Medical problems, prescripton drugs probed in death of Brittany Murphy's husband, Simon Monjack

Authorities said they have ruled out foul play in the death of actress Brittany Murphy's husband and are examining his medical history.

Screenwriter Simon Monjack died at his home in the 1800 block of Rising Glen Road, just five months after the death of his wife, according to Sgt. Louie Lozano of the Los Angeles Police Department.

Sources told The Times that authorities collected some prescription drugs from Monjack's home and that it is standard procedure to examine those as part of the death investigation. The sources, who spoke on the condition that they not be named because the investigation is still open, stressed they have no evidence that drugs caused his death.

At 9:24 p.m. Sunday, the Los Angeles Fire Department responded to a 911 call for an “unspecified medical aid request,” according to spokesman Brian Humphrey. Fire Department personnel provided medical services to Monjack, and he was pronounced dead, according to a Los Angeles police sergeant, who declined to give his name, at the Hollywood station late Sunday night. The sergeant said detectives were arriving at the home.

In February, the Los Angeles County coroner's office ruled that Murphy died of pneumonia complicated by an iron deficiency, anemia and multiple drug intoxication. Coroner's officials said Murphy had gone into sudden cardiac arrest because of "drug intake," and her Dec. 20 death was classified as an accident.

Murphy, 32, went into cardiac arrest at her home in the Hollywood Hills. L.A. firefighters responded to a medical call about 8 a.m. at the home. Firefighters tried unsuccessfully to revive Murphy on the way to Cedars-Sinai Medical Center, where she was pronounced dead about two hours later.

Murphy appeared in "Clueless" (1995), in which she starred opposite Alicia Silverstone and made many other film appearances, including in "Girl, Interrupted" (1999), "8 Mile" (2002), "The Dead Girl" (2006), and "Across the Hall" (2009). She also was featured as the voice of Luanne Platter in the Fox TV show "King of the Hill."

-- Andrew Blankstein and Rich Connell

Photo: Brittany Murphy and Simon Monjack. Credit: FilmMagic

Comments

[david n]

Do ya think? Brilliant deduction. Life goes on .

[Pincus]

Prescription drugs. The new heroin. So chic and socially acceptable.

[monica]

So Sad.

[david n]

could i have his house.

[JL]

Life goes on until it happens to someone you care about, like your kid, your parents, your brother or sister, friends, partner...ten years ago very few people were using rx drugs like this but now almost everyone I talk to has someone in their immediate family who either has or had a big problem.

I don't want to make any snap judgments but I do know enough about the addiction that most people don't 'die accidentally' from this disease. What usually happens is the doctor prescribing the drugs sees how fast the person is going through their prescription and suddenly says 'no more', the person's world is now coming to an end, and in despair they overdose and die. It's called not having any coping skills to deal with life without being high.

Totally treatable and completely unnecessary.

[daddyfreddie]

I say depression and drugs killed him.

[REA]

Another RX prescribed celebrity OD. Wow! I'm shocked!