A British coroner rules that the 'Rehab' singer died of accidental alcohol poisoning after investigation determined she had five times legal driving limit in her body at time of death.
- Oct 27, 2011
AceShowbiz - Three months after Amy Winehouse suddenly passed away at the age of 27, her family has found a bit of solace. On Wednesday, October 26, British coroner finally revealed the "Rehab" singer's official cause of death, ruling it to be an "unintended consequence" of accidental alcohol poisoning.
In a statement issued after an inquest in London, family spokesman Chris Goodman said, "It is some relief to finally find out what happened to Amy." He continued on as saying that the singer's family "understand there was alcohol in her system when she passed away; it is likely a build-up over a number of days."
"The court heard that Amy was battling hard to conquer her problems with alcohol, and it is a source of great pain to us that she could not win in time. She had started drinking again that week after a period of abstinence. It underlines how important our work with the Amy Winehouse Foundation is to us, to help as many young people and children as we can in her name."
Near the end of the statement, Chris shared, "It means a lot to us, and from the overwhelming messages of support we have had since Amy died, we know she meant a great deal to people all over the world. We want to thank everyone for that and for their continuing enthusiasm for the foundation."
During the Wednesday inquest, coroner Suzanne Greenway gave a verdict of "death by misadventure" to the sudden passing of Amy last July 23. "She had consumed sufficient alcohol at 416 mg per deciliter [of blood] and the unintended consequence of such potentially fatal levels was her sudden and unexpected death," so explained the coroner.
Pathologist Suhail Baithun additionally told the inquest committee that Amy had consumed a "very large quantity of alcohol" which brought the level of alcohol in her blood to more than five times over the legal drunk-driving limit. He also noted that no sign of illegal drugs was found in her system, and her vital organs were in good health.
A police office, who was called to Amy's house after a security guard found the singer unresponsive in bed, said two empty full-size bottles and one smaller bottle of vodka were found scattered around her bedroom. Dr. Christina Romete, Amy's personal doctor, confirmed the singer had started drinking again three days before her death.
Christina said that when she met Amy the night before she passed away, the singer appeared to be calm and coherent. "She was tipsy I would say, but she didn't slur and was able to hold a full conversation," so said the doctor, who noted that she didn't worry about the singer committing suicide because she had told her, "I do not want to die."
