‘No sign of foul play’ in Whitney Houston’s death

By STEPHEN MCGINTY
Published on Tuesday 14 February 2012 00:00

THE body of Whitney Houston was expected to be released to her family last night, after the Los Angeles coroner’s office concluded that there was no evidence of foul play surrounding her death.

Investigators have said it could be weeks before the exact cause of death is determined, following the discovery of the singer’s body in a bathtub at the Beverly Hilton Hotel on Saturday.

Coroner’s officials say they will not release any information on a post-mortem examination performed on Sunday at the request of police detectives.

Yet according to media reports, the singer died from a cocktail of alcohol and Xanax and other powerful prescription drugs. Police last night confirmed Houston was under water, apparently unconscious when found in the bath. Her family has allegedly been told by the coroner’s office that there was not enough water in her lungs for her to have drowned.

However, assistant chief coroner Ed Winter said yesterday it was too early to determine what caused the 48-year-old singer’s death. Asked about the reports, said to have come from family sources, he said: “I’m the one that talked to the family and I did not provide that information.”

He confirmed that Houston was found in the bath, but said it was too soon to determine the cause of death before the results of tests.

“We are awaiting the results of toxicology tests,” he said: “We do not know yet [the cause of death]. When we find out, we will be in contact with the family and give them our findings.”

it was reported that the singer’s body would be taken home to New Jersey for a funeral to be held at the end of the week.

Houston’s family has raised the possibility of holding a wake on Thursday and the funeral on Friday, at the Prudential Centre, in Newark, New Jersey, which can seat about 18,000. The information came from two people who had spoken to the family.

The singer was found by a member of her entourage in her hotel room on Saturday, just hours before she was supposed to appear at a pre-Grammy gala.

Beverly Hills Police Lieutenant Mark Rosen said there were no indications of foul play when she was found.

Paramedics’ attempts to revive her were unsuccessful and Houston, once the golden girl of the pop world, was pronounced dead shortly before 4pm.

Meanwhile, Houston’s daughter, Bobbi Kristina Brown, 18, was taken to a Los Angeles hospital by ambulance and later released. A source close to the family said she was treated for stress and anxiety.

Ms Brown, who is Houston’s daughter from her tumultuous marriage to singer Bobby Brown, had accompanied her mother to several pre-Grammy Awards events. It was reported that she had also fallen asleep in the bath, the night before her mother’s death in another room.

Ms Brown’s friends tried knocking on her door repeatedly and eventually had to contact security to open the door to her room so that she could be removed from the tub. Bobby Brown said in a statement: “At this time, we ask for privacy, especially for my daughter, Bobbi Kristina.

“I appreciate all of the condolences that have been directed towards my family and I at this most difficult time.”

A sensation from her first album, Houston was one of the world’s best-selling artists from the mid-1980s to the late 1990s. Her success carried her beyond music to movies, starring in such hits as The Bodyguard and Waiting to Exhale.

Yesterday, Bishop TD Jakes, a Texas minister and producer on Houston’s final film project, a re-make of the 1970s release Sparkle, said he saw no signs that Houston was having any substance issues.

“There was no evidence in working with her on Sparkle that there was any struggle in her life,” Mr Jakes said.

“She left a deep impression on everybody.”