After troubled singer Amy Winehouse passed away last month, many speculated that the British soul siren had succumbed to her long-term battle with drug addiction. But toxicology results have now revealed that there were no illegal drugs in Winehouse’s body at the time of her death.
According to Huffington Post, a statement released Aug. 23 by spokesman Chris Goodman on the behalf of Winehouse’s family claimed that “alcohol was present” in the singer’s body at the time of her death.
“Toxicology results returned to the Winehouse family by authorities have confirmed that there were no illegal substances in Amy’s system at the time of her death,” read the statement, which did not mention any legal drugs.
Although alcohol was found in her body, according to Goodman, “it cannot be determined as yet it if played a role in her death.”
The statement concluded, “The family would like to thank police and coroner for their continuing thorough investigations and for keeping them informed throughout the process. They await the outcome of the inquest [into Winehouse’s death] in October,” according to MTV.
An initial autopsy report came back inconclusive as to the cause of Winehouse’s untimely death and London police said that further toxicology reports would be needed to determine the cause.
Last month, Winehouse’s family said that they believed the Back to Black singer had succumbed to alcohol withdrawal. According to a family source, Winehouse’s father, Mitch, explained in his eulogy that he believed his daughter died from the stress of quitting alcohol cold turkey.
“He said doctors had told Amy to gradually reduce her intake of alcohol and to avoid binging at all costs,” said the source. “Amy told him she couldn’t do that. It was all or nothing and she gave up completely. Mitch said the shock of giving up, after everything she had been through over a bad few years, was just too much for her to take.”
At the funeral, Mitch also explained to the singer’s mournful fans that she had beaten her high-profile drug addiction three years prior to her death, but was still battling her addiction to alcohol. Mitch explained that she had told him, “Dad I’ve had enough of drinking, I can’t stand the look on your and the family’s faces anymore.”
Mitch also claimed that Winehouse had developed the lung disease emphysema from smoking cigarettes and crack, but her spokeswoman later said that the singer only had “early signs of what could lead to emphysema.”
Winehouse’s inquest, a procedure which is held in Britain to establish the facts whenever someone dies violently or in unexplained circumstances, is due to begin Oct. 26 in London. –nicholas robinson
