LOCI ANGELS – Brittany Murphy, star of “Clueless” and “8 Mile”, died of pneumonia, with prescription drugs and anemia also plays a role, a Coroner’s official said Thursday. The Dec. 20 death of actor was random, and probably could have been prevented if Murphy had seen a doctor earlier, Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter authority said. He, however, noted that she had an appointment with the doctor a few days after she died.
Winter refused to specify what types of drugs involved in her death, and said that further details will be released in several weeks, when the report was completed. He also said that there was no sign of wrongdoing. Winter said Morphy’s community-acquired pneumonia was serious and proved lethal when combined with medications and iron deficiency.
Murphy died at the age of 32 after collapsing in her Hollywood Hills home. The mother and her husband have said that the actor does not abuse prescription drugs or have an eating disorder. Attempts to reach them for further comment were not immediately successful. Murphy’s husband, Simon Monaco, and her mother, Sharon Murphy, told investigators actress had flu-like symptoms in the days before she died.
Monaco told the Associated Press last month that his wife had several prescriptions, including an anti-seizure medication, but not abuse medications. He said she had taken over-the-counter Robitussin for her latest sicknesses. Michael Baden, former senior Coroner in New York, said the amounts and types of drugs Murphy took the key to understanding how she died. “You must not die of pneumonia, usually so fast, says Baden said. He that the use of certain prescription drugs can lead to pneumonia.” It sounds more like it is a drug than a natural pulmonary pneumonia, “says Baden, who did not work Murphy on the matter, but has served as an expert witness in several high-profile deaths.
