A British coroner found that Amy Winehouse died because there was too much alcohol in her blood. The 27-year-old, Grammy Award–winning singer had a blood alcohol concentration that was five times the British drunk driving limit.

After weeks of being sober, Winehouse died from accidental alcohol poisoning. Coroner Suzanne Greenaway said that it was “death by misadventure.”

When Winehouse died on July 23, the cause of death was inconclusive.

Her blood alcohol level was 0.4; the British drunk driving limit is 0.08. Her doctor, Dr. Christina Romete, said that she had been sober most of July and had only resumed drinking a few days before her death.

Romete added that Winehouse had turned to alcohol after she stopped taking illicit drugs in 2008. When Romete saw her the night before her death, she recalls Winehouse being in a  calm mood and talking about her upcoming birthday.

The police detective who arrived shortly after Winehouse’s body was found, Inspector Les Newman, said there were three empty vodka bottles in her bedroom.

Andrew Morris, Winehouse’s live-in security guard who found her body, told the coroner’s court, “She did it moderately… she wasn’t drinking to get drunk.”

 Winehouse’s parents attended the hearing at St. Pancras Coroner’s Court on Wednesday, October 26. The  family spokesman Chris Goodman said in a statement that  it was a relief  for the family “to finally find out what happened to Amy.”

Source: Boston Globe

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About The Author

Miya Williams is a Blast Magazine editor-at-large

One Response

  1. scallywag

    What is interesting to note is that Ms Winehouse was said to be vehemently opposed to any sort of psychological therapy, the very thing that she probably needed to help her get to the root of her addictions. After all addiction can often be said to be the desire to have more of something even with the full knowledge that that in itself will never be enough to hit the spot- to use a common euphemism. Yet if one wants to take the discussion further one can also argue that addiction is the desire to subrogate one’s identity, circumstances, reality to another paradigm- something that Ms Winehouse did when she sang as well as challenged at the same time.

    Perhaps then this is why her death and the exact nature of her death will deeply affect those of us who also have to contend with our own afflictions, source of identity and the desire at times to not have to address the very things that make us unique and whole. Something that Ms Winehouse for a period was able to do in her own way, in a way that of course wildly touched so many of us and ultimately betrayed us.

    God bless you Amy…

    http://scallywagandvagabond.com/2011/10/coroner-rules-that-our-hero-amy-winehouse-drank-herself-to-death/

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