Heiress Casey Johnson found dead at 30

FILE: Johnson & Johnson heiress Casey Johnson with her girlfriend Tila Tequila. Johnson has been found dead in her LA apartment
Casey Johnson, the troubled heiress to the Johnson and Johnson family, was found dead in L.A yesterday. She was just 30 years old. Johnson grew up as part of Hollywood’s elite and was best friends with Paris Hilton as a child. She was originally considered for the role of Paris’ sidekick on The Simple Life, which she passed on and later claimed to regret. Johnson made headlines recently for her engagement to prolific twitterer Tila Tequila. She was also arrested a month ago after robbing an ex girlfriend’s home. There were stories that Johnson was broke and living in opulent squalor after her family cut her off because she refused to go to rehab. Johnston adopted a daughter from Kazakhstan two years ago, but the child was being cared for by Johnson’s mother.

It’s rumored that Johnson died from a prescription drug overdose although no cause has yet been determined and police say foul play is not suspected. TMZ reports that she was dead for several days before she was found. Her last message on Twitter was posted December 29.

Casey Johnson, the heiress to the Johnson & Johnson fortune who recently made tabloid headlines with a purported engagement to reality star Tila Tequila, has died at age 30.

Her death was announced by Tequila on her Twitter page and confirmed by police.

“Everyone please pray 4 my Wifey Casey Johnson,” Tequila wrote. “She has passed away. Thank u for all ur love and support but I will be offline to be w/ family.”‘

Los Angeles police and firefighters were called to a house at 11:51 a.m. Monday. Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene.

“It appears to be a natural death,” says police Officer Sara Faden. “There’s no evidence of foul play. A toxicology report from the coroner’s office will proceed next.”

Johnson, who leaves a toddler daughter Ava whom she had adopted, was the great-great granddaughter of the founder of the pharmaceutical giant, and the daughter of New York Jets owner Robert Wood Johnson.

An openly gay socialite, Johnson had a knack for attracting paparazzi – and trouble. A nasty fight with ex-girlfriend Courtenay Semel, daughter of former Yahoo chief Terry Semel, reportedly resulted in Johnson’s hair catching on fire last October. Then in November, she was arrested for allegedly breaking into another former girlfriend’s house.

In December, Tequila announced the pair were engaged. “Tonight, my beautiful girlfriend has just asked me to marry her and check out this rock,” the lingerie-wearing Tequila said in an Internet video. “Bam! That is a 17-carat diamond ring from my baby.”

[From People]

That’s just really sad and so pointless. This woman needed help and she wouldn’t accept it from her family and ended up dying. This leaves a pit in my stomach. I didn’t know this person and she had a privileged life and kind of squandered it away, but no one should die so young. Again another young person has died from a likely prescription drug overdose, either accidental or intentional. We need stricter regulations on prescription drugs in the US so that they’re not so easy to obtain and abuse. I’m not saying it will stop everyone from taking them recreationally, but it could save lives and help some people clean up before it’s too late.

Photos below credit: WENN

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77 Responses to “Heiress Casey Johnson found dead at 30”

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  1. Lara says:

    You’ve spelt Heiress wrong in the title

  2. any says:

    OH MY WORD. No, the year has just started. What is happening? Oh man. My deepest sympathies.

  3. Lway says:

    Jason Statham is SO gorgeous …..

    @any – Anyone who hangs out with skanky Tila is bound to have something bad happen to them..

  4. fizXgirl314 says:

    why is everyone dying? STOP IT ALREADY!

    btw, you’ve spelled spelled incorrectly… spelt is not a word… it is, but not the one you think… I have been reading so many people write “spelt” and “smelt” that I’m starting to think it’s a conspiracy… I wasn’t born in the states but even *I* know that’s atrocious :/

    what’s next? spellen or smollen? yeesh!

  5. Celebitchy says:

    Thanks Lara, fixed.

  6. Lita says:

    This is only tangentialy on topic but in a general sense the issue I take with tightening up prescription medicines that can be used ‘recreationally’ is that I have a sinking feeling it really severely impacts on legitimate would-be recipients. Eg my Mum worked as a nurse when they stopped using heroin in hospitals and banned it in my country. She said it was awful eg in cancer wards with people in such pain that they just scream, no matter how much morphine (the drug they had to use instead,which is also abused ‘recreationally’) they were given even though the nurses knew one shot of heroin would sort them out. So the nurses there would give way above recommended dosage, and it wouldn’t have the effect this other banned drug would. It’s an extreme example but a legitimate one. Eg you can’t buy decent cold pills (with pseudoephidrine) because twats can make speed with it. We get stuffed around because one of my son’s meds can be used for something or other; really makes our life difficult and more expensive as a result.

    People will get their buzz on if they want, whether it is one way or another (imo that’s their call so long as it doesn’t damage others). I hate the penalisation of the legitimate schmoe.

  7. tsagrenderp says:

    It’s crazy that those who have so much feel so little. I only knew about her from reading articles here and on Gawker and now she’s dead? It seems so unbelievable.

    My ocndolences to her family and those who loved her.

  8. Ponytail says:

    fizXgirl314 : ‘spelt’ is perfectly acceptable as the past particple of ‘spell’. Lara may be following the British way of spelling it.
    ‘Smelt’ is also OK for British English users. Yes, both spelt and smelt have other meanings, but they both also function as past participles.

  9. LolaBella says:

    RIP Casey. No matter the circumstances, it is always very sad when someone dies. Even sadder that it looks like she died alone and had been dead for a few days before she was found.

    The thing that pisses me off is how Casey’s famewhore fiancee Tila is going to use her death to garner publicity for herself.

    It started last night on Twitter when she tweeted that she was told that Casey was alive but in a coma and then continued until she confirmed that Casey was dead.

    Tila will make this all about ‘Tila’ in the next few days and it’s going to be disgusting.

    Don’t be surprised if she doesn’t try to get a reality show out of this; one that follow her to see how she is ‘coping’ and ‘grieving’ and follows her as she gets back into the dating game. Ugh, just you wait and see.

  10. raincoaster says:

    From what I know of Casey Johnson and her crowd I’d be extremely surprised if this turned out to be death by Prescription drugs.

  11. teehee says:

    Wow you knew this was coming if she didnt get help, yet would never want to think or admit it, and certainly not this soon! Still so sad anyway– you always hang on to a last hope that they will turn around before its too late but it rarely happens.

  12. CandyKay says:

    I don’t think limiting access to prescription drugs would have helped Casey Johnson. Someone with her financial resources would have gotten whatever drugs she wanted, one way or another.

    The same is true for celebrities like Michael Jackson, Heath Ledger, Anna Nicole Smith and Brittany Murphy. Famous people will always find some doctor, somewhere, willing to write them whatever prescription they want.

    I agree with Lita about how restrictions on abused medicines make it harder for people who are legitimately sick to use the medicines for their intended purpose. I miss cold drugs with pseudoephedrine too! (sniffs with cold)

  13. bella says:

    Some ironies I’ve noted:

    1. Pharmaceutical Heiress dies from prescription drug overdose.
    2. Death of a young person by prescription drug overdose is only a “natural cause” in L.A.
    3. Chronic pain patients with legitimate need of pain medication (WHO ARE NOT FAMOUS/NOTORIOUS) must go through months or years of physical therapy, chiropractor visits, even surgery, before they can obtain the amount of pain medication required just to take the edge off.

  14. CYANN says:

    My brother died of an rx overdose a few days before Thanksgiving. It’s really tough and we warned him to stop. This is really becoming an epidemic.

  15. WTF?!? says:

    Bella, number three is spot-on. As someone in constant, chronic pain, finding a doctor who– even after years of treatment, tests and documentation– will write necessary prescriptions is a Herculean effort, and if one doc retires, it’s practically impossible to find another who doesn’t want to reinvent the wheel to cover his DEA a$$. These celebutards are bad enough, but physicians like Dr. Conrad Murray put the good docs under added, terrifying scrutiny.
    I’m sorry CJ died, but it’s not a tragedy, it was predictable and preventable. Same goes for Amy Winehouse and Lindsey Lohan, when their obits hit the news.

  16. BitterBetty says:

    R.I.P

  17. Lara says:

    Thank you Ponytail! I am using the British way as I am British!

  18. Goddess711 says:

    I thought her daughter was taken away from her and placed with the mother a month or so ago because she was such a mess?
    Tila Tequila is a waste-case; Johnson was just found dead (apparently for a few days…) and Tila’s tweeting that it was a prescription overdose? Something’s weird about this and Tila’s involvement. It doesn’t sound right.
    And “spelt” is British and completely fine. Canadians should know that.

  19. Ophelia says:

    I think celebrities should be required to watch Intervention.

  20. Ophelia says:

    @ Lita, I totally agree. I was thinking that right away, but you put it better. I have a few medical problems requiring prescriptions and I worry about that becoming a problem. I think if someone is set out to kill themselves, putting legal obstacles up wouldn’t work long and would be pretty pointless.
    RIP, it’s still sad, she was really young. Poor girl and her family.

  21. Lita says:

    Hehe CandyKay by empathising with my post you just classed yourself a ‘legitimate schmoe.’ Two words I don’t associate, at least by your nick and avitar .. though everyone is less glamorous with a sniffle ;o)

  22. canadianchick says:

    RIP and hope her daughter will be okay.When someone has died alone and her daughter is orphaned why are we arguing about spelling? Just sayin…

  23. Neelyo says:

    I’ve read this on several sites but that doesn’t make it true, that she had diabetes. If so, the cause of death may not be entirely drug related.

    This is a sad unnecessary death. Who knows what the real story is but I’m sure Tila Tequila will tweet about it in the next few days. I feel no sympathy whatsoever for her because I don’t think she’d know a sincere feeling if you hit her with a brick. Hmm, maybe someone should try that.

  24. DoMaJoReMc says:

    @ WTF?!?: I thought the same thing about Amy Winehouse and Lindsay Lohan, but I just didn’t want to be the one to actually put it in writing. Thank you! These ‘celebutards’ seem to have a sense of entitlement. What they need to understand is that it is all of us ‘little people’ who have made them what they are today. Buying their music, paying to see their movies, buying their families’ products, etc… So I guess my bone of contention is that these people should step back and live the lives that they SHOULD BE LIVING, and honored to have.

    Sounding off……………

  25. diva says:

    Instead of worrying about grammar and spelling I believe the topic is Casey Joshnsons death, not an English class. I feel as though her family should have been more insistent on getting her help, her living condition and erratic behavior were enough to get her placed on a 5150 hold. Had they done that, maybe she would be alive today.

  26. bella says:

    @ Lita –

    Thank you so much for thinking of chronic pain patients and cancer victims in your comments. I was typing mine (had to stop to take change the baby) before I had the opportunity to read yours.

    Availability, as well as every-day doctors’ unwillingness to face DEA investigations and patient lawsuits, directly affect so many of the every-men (and women) who are not rich, have “typical” or no insurance, and only 1 identity. Abuse of prescription drugs (particularly pain meds and sedatives) by the rich and/or famous has a negative impact on those who truly need them.

  27. Tess says:

    @tsagrenderp

    Your word “ocndolences” is a perfect description for deaths like Casey’s…sad, pointless, and in hindsight, predictable.

  28. CiCi says:

    Tighter restrictions on prescription drugs? Come on! How about some personal responsibility. I have family members legitimately on controlled substances for health reasons and what a pain in the butt it is to fill those prescriptions! Responsible people are careful about mixing drugs, taking things without prescription, etc. And if there were tighter restrictions, this sad girl would have found a different way to kill herself by accident.

  29. e says:

    stricter regulations won’t help much. Maybe a better network to track what prescriptions patients are getting. Patients who want drugs know how to work the system. It is not always a case of shady drs handing out prescritions to their wealthy patients. Besides, you can easily get that stuff on the street. People who want to get high will find a way.

  30. Alexa says:

    Another poster here that agrees with Lita (raises hand . . .)! Punishing those whose lives depend on certain medications because of the irresponsibility and recklessness of others will NOT SOLVE this problem at all! The “War on Drugs” continues to fail miserably too.

    That said, EVERYONE – please educate yourself about the potential dangers of taking any prescription drug – especially those that effect the central nervous system (and especially those that can slow/stop breathing if doseage is too high).

  31. Whitey Fisk says:

    As many posters have noted, making access to prescription medication tougher would only hurt legitimate patients.

    Why do I have to sign away my soul to buy a 12 count box of Sudafed, while I can buy a giant jug of grain alcohol without so much as an id check? The bottle of booze could easily kill me and a number of other people. 12 Sudafed? I guess it could make me a little shaky. The horror.

    I’ll look for some statistics, but my guess is that many, MANY more people die alcohol-related deaths than prescription drug-related deaths.

    Why is there so much criticism directed at pharmaceutical companies and so little directed at wineries and distilleries?

  32. fizXgirl314 says:

    OMG is that why I’ve been seeing smelt all over the place? I thought the whole world had gone illiterate… smelt has such a cacophanous sound to it to me… I wish they would standardize that… LAME!

  33. Ogechi says:

    Rest in peace

  34. Jojo says:

    Rich people will always be able to get as many prescription drugs as they want, no matter how strict the regs. Get real people!

  35. Newyorking says:

    What is RIP? This was a long time coming for Casey. Who is next, LiLo? Why don’t they go to rehab? Don’t they want to get better?

  36. bella says:

    @ Whitey –

    I work in a pharmacy (ha-ha, right?) and the change in Federal law re: Sudafed and other products containing pseudoephedrine (sp?) went into effect in Jan 2007. Because crystal meth can be made with just about any chemical found under your kitchen sink and pseudoephedrine, it became a regulated substance (hence the ID requirement) with a daily limit to the amount a person may (legally) purchase. Also, since kids have been using the main ingredient in cough medicine (I think it’s dextromorphan) to get high, we now card for cough medicine with that ingredient as well. Gotta love the drug abusers and the feds that try to stop them. *sarcasm*

    @ Newyorking –

    Rest In Peace. And I don’t think they want to get better: living an f’d up life is a lot easier when you’re on drugs than it is when you’re sober. It doesn’t take a strong person to use drugs so cavalierly and/or take their own life; it takes a strong person to get through all the hard times in life WITHOUT using drugs to numb the emotional, physical, mental pain. I think some of the famous/notorious people who use just don’t have the cajones required to make it without a crutch. Others may actually have legitimate pain. Only God and they know for sure.

  37. This is sad for her family, especially her daughter. Her family took steps to show there were consequences for her actions, but she refused help & paid the price.

    Where was her “fiancee” for the days she was lying dead, alone? If my boyfriend falls asleep in the living room after I’ve gone to bed, I’ll wake up in the middle of the night b/c I somehow know he’s not laying next to me. Did Tila even bother to go check on her “wifey”?

    Oh & attention Lindsay Lohan: crazy + drugs = dead.

  38. Lita says:

    Wow I am so glad – I really thought that people may not agree with what I said about the hoopla around medications.

  39. lucy2 says:

    I agree – sad, but predictable and preventable.
    Tighter regulations on prescription drugs will not solve the problem – after all, heroin, cocaine, etc are all completely illegal and people still get and use those.
    Thank goodness her mother has been caring for her adopted daughter. How did someone as messed up as her get cleared for an adoption anyway? So wrong.
    You would hope that if nothing else, some of these young people dying would make some of the others wake up and fix their life (as mentioned, Winehouse, Lohan) but you know they won’t.

    I honestly don’t understand why people who have just received horrible news and are grieving a loved one feel the need to twitter about it. I would be so upset and disoriented that updating my status or whatever would be the last thing on my mind for a long time. It’s just weird.

  40. Birdie says:

    Wow…

    Tila Tequila hadn’t seen or heard from her FIANCE since December 29, yet Casey’s maid was still the one to find her on January 4…. Wow. To not worry about someone you “love” after not hearing from them for a full week?!? I am engaged too, not only did I spend New Years with my fiance, but if I don’t speak to him for 1 day, I get worried.

    Tila should take her head out of her ass and leave the mourning to those who really loved Casey who couldn’t get her to accept the help she clearly needed. Tila was a famewhore and an enabler and ultimately represents how far Casey had fallen.

    My regrets for the Johnson family and especially for little Ava.

  41. Whitey Fisk says:

    Bella, you’re working in Cold & Flu Candy Land back there! All those decongestants just ripe for the pickin’!

    Don’t they also use Drano to make meth? Why isn’t the federal government supervising us to make sure we don’t buy more Drano than they consider necessary?

    “Whoa, little lady, two clogs in one month? I don’t think so. Step aside!”

  42. Firestarter says:

    I have read several articles about her and Diva, her family DID try on many occassions, to get her help. Unless you are found incompetent, you cannot be forced into getting treatment for yourself.

    Another case of someone, too young, dying needlessly. Also proving that money and power do not equate happiness. She had everything and yet (am not positive since we won’t know for sure) died from perhaps a drug overdose, alone. People will say how it isn’t tragic because she squandered her money and abused her station in life. While that maybe true, just because you have a better life financially than most, does not mean you do not suffer from the same demons that the middle class and poor suffer from that leads them to drug addiction. Some people can handle life and it’s great pressures, others are not so well equipped.

    Like many have already said, I hope 2010 does not start up where 2009 left off.

    On a side note: Not that I am wishing ill upon her, because that isn’t the case, but how the heck does Lindsay Lohan keep going?

    @Whitey Fisk- Don’t know how it is where you live, but the state where I am DOES control the amount of cold pills, Draino,Muratic acid and a few other things used in the making of meth. I think that Red Devil lye (specific lye) is off the market completely here. We have a terribly bad meth problem, but for every ingredient they begin to keep an eye on, meth producers find a way to use something or create something in it’s place. When you purchase certain things:i.e cold pills, you have to show your drivers license, sign for it and you go into a data base and if you are caught exceeding your monthly limit time and again, as they will watch you-WHAMO.

  43. SolitaryAngel says:

    @ Lita & Bella: ditto! I am one of those regular non-famous people who need several prescriptions, including one for chronic pain; I am and continue to be royally fucked when it comes to finding a decent (HA) doctor who will write what I need without making me climb a mountain and pull sunshine out of my ass. Casey Johnson would have killed herself with so many other things it’s not fair or prudent to blame it on prescription drugs just yet. Let’s wait until the toxicology comes back shall we?

  44. Sudini says:

    I really hope that Tila doesn’t stand to profit from this as she is no doubt planning to, vile as she is..

    My prayers go out to Casey and her family. I hope Casey is finally at peace and that her family and loved ones find healing.

  45. javelin says:

    Rich people can just get plastic surgery if they want prescription painkillers (see: Winehouse, Amy).

  46. Alecto says:

    i’m a police officer. had a bad cold one day while at work. went to the drug store to buy sudafed. wanted 2 boxes, one for home and one to carry in my work bag. i could only buy one and had to sign the paper. stupid meth monkeys.

  47. bella says:

    Whitey, I wouldn’t be surprised if they started to! Freon used to be a main ingredient as well, and the feds have that going the way of the dinosaurs, too!

    Firestarter, we are actually stopped by our registers at the point of purchase (once we’ve swiped or entered the ID info) if the customer has exceeded their daily limit!

    Solitary, I’m sorry. I know how hard it is. I’ve had 2 failed knee surgeries (too young for replacement), and when I had to change “regular” physicians, my new doc cut my meds in half because HE wasn’t comfortable with my dosage! Supposedly, I was supposed to be referred to a “pain specialist” but that never happened. And even if I did get the referral, there are none in my area, so what good would it have done me? Honestly, it’s ridiculous!

  48. Iggles says:

    Omg! I live in NYC and the only product I ever had to (occasionally) show ID buy was alcohol! They do not monitor cold medicine and household products here. I feel for you guys in other states. It sounds pretty terrible.

    Anyway, RIP CJ!
    Yes, I think Tila is a famewhore tool.

  49. GatsbyGal says:

    Eh, I’m not surprised, or saddened. She was a stupid person who did stupid things and died in a stupid way.

    It STILL infuriates me that she, of all people, was allowed to adopt a child. It’s not like this drug addiction and errectic behavior popped up a few months ago out of nowhere. She’s probably been this way since she was in her early 20s.

    Also, LOL @ Tila Tequila. I wouldn’t be surprised if she stood to somehow gain from this death, or wasn’t in some way responsible. I mean really, the new year came and went, and Tila, who claims to be this woman’s fiance for crying out loud, didn’t think to try and contact her or find her or call the police to check on her? Seems so odd to me. Tila’s celebrity status was waning, that’s for sure, and now ~*~magically~*~ she’s in the spotlight again, debuting as the “heartbroken” widow of “tragically” deceased Johnson & Johnson heiress Casey Johnson. Fucking disgusting.

  50. Jojo says:

    The death of another Johnson, but this one has a REAL legacy: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100105/ap_on_re_us/us_obit_johnson

  51. Caprice says:

    If you read the whole story it makes sense why Tila hasn’t talked to Casey for a while. They got into an argument the last time they saw each other and Tila said that she tried contacting her but didn’t get anything. Maybe she just thought Casey was ignoring her? I also think it would be kind of stalkerish if my partner came banging on my door just because they haven’t heard from me after a fight.

  52. alliesue says:

    It truely is sad that in a way her fortune was her downfall. Parents expressing their emotions for her with how much money she could have. I have to disagree with the prescription pill regulations. People with an addiction will find a way to get what they want. Always.

  53. Ria says:

    I’m a pharmacist, and my hubby is an ob/gyn. He has a big problem with people doc shopping. That is, they come to him for one script of hydrocodone for pelvic pain, the dentist for another for that bad tooth, their regular doc for their knee…… The doctor is taught to believe a patient is in pain until he can prove they aren’t. A lot of times patients will start their work up, only to drop out or switch docs as soon as he starts figuring out it’s a scam.

    As a pharmacist, when I worked retail before bailing back to the hospital, I was amazed at the fact that people had multiple scripts from multiple docs. Unfortuantely, we couldn’t contact all those docs and tell them the pt is doing this because of HIPPA laws (well, at least when I was retail 5 years ago we couldn’t). Or, they would come in with scripts with huge numbers of pills, only to be back in a few days with cash to get a refill. That’s one of the reasons I left retail and went back to my little hospital cubbyhole.

    The only retail pharmacies I know of where all computers are connected are CVS and Walgreens. So, you can go round up your prescriptions from all your different doctors, then get one at Walmart, one at Walgreens then head to you local mom & pop, and no one is the wiser you have multiple scripts / scripts that interact with each other so long as youn pay cash (insurance will alert the pharmacist or deny the payment).

    It’s easy for people to scam the medical professionals this way. We need to have some sort of computer system linking ALL pharmacies. We already do it with the pseudoephedrine purchases.

    And yes, it makes it hard for patients with LEGITIMATE pain because the docs are suspicious. Also, there are several unscrupulous docs out there who will write pain meds for anything (“Oh, you have the flu? Have some Lortab for the body aches.”).

  54. juiceinla says:

    Like many others here I felt sad reading this, even though I didn’t know a damn thing about this person, or really care.

    It feels weird. I think what is bothering me is that this young woman (or any of her peers) exemplify a horrible trend in our society (played out to the extreme here in young debutante Hollyweird) in which so many people have ridiculous expectations and an unearned sense of entitlement.

    Seems like this society values the entertainment value in telling everyone that we are all special (hence destroying the meaning thereof), and when someone believes it but is unable to deal with the reality that, perhaps they are not special, the coping mechanism so readily available is drugs.

    way tooo deep for a tuesday.

  55. Tammy K/ says:

    If Tila Tequila was really “in love ” with this girl, why was it several days before anyone even knew she was dead. It’s a sad story. Lindsey will be the next one we here about.

  56. Firestarter says:

    @Tammy K/- Someone said it either here or over at dlisted, Lindsay is like a cockroach and cannot be destroyed, she will just keep coming back.

  57. GracieXDoes says:

    @Birdie My sentiments exactly. I’m a rather pain in the arse gf as I tend to call abt 5x a day just while at work to talk, say “I love you,” or find out what my so wants for dinner. I couldn’t go a week even if I was mad or overseas. :-0

  58. Goddess711 says:

    Is Tila Tequila short on money? What’s with going from being engaged to Casey with a 17 carat ring, to the ring being a hoax, to “Everyone please pray 4 my Wifey Casey Johnson.” after not hearing from CJ for almost a week while immediatley blaming the death on “prescription drugs”??? Something’s really wierd about this.

  59. Linda says:

    Natural causes with a drug addict? I don’t think so.

  60. Carrie says:

    OK, I know that it is really difficult to help an adult child, and addiction recovery only works if the person wants to get better, etc. And I know (from reading about this tragedy) that Casey was in two different rehab stints this past year, and she left early both times. And that her parents had both cut her off to try and force her to get help. HOWEVER, and I am NOT blaming the parents, it seems like with their money and influence, they could have pulled a Jamie Spears on her- ie. and 5150 psychiatric hold and a conservatorship. It wasn’t too long ago that everyone was saying Britney was certainly going to die of an overdose, and now look at how much her life has turned around?

    I’m just saying that this could have been prevented through some herculean efforts…maybe.

  61. Obvious says:

    As sad as this is my question is what day did she actually die? they said it seems as if she’d been dead several days.

    Is she a victim of 2009? or the start of the 2010 list?

  62. mollination says:

    I know this is callous, but meh.

    I’m not sad for anyone but her daughter, and sorry to say, but I bet she’s better off without her. This woman-child never took care of her, was a completely absentee drug-addicted “mother” who cared more about the spotlight she did nothing to deserve than staying home and caring for her little baby. I lost a parent, so believe me, I know it’s better to have a bad parent than no parent at all 99.9% of the time – but this is the .01%.

  63. niamh (neev) says:

    people.com is turning into the obituary’s.

  64. GatsbyGal says:

    @ mollination: “I know it’s better to have a bad parent than no parent at all 99.9% of the time – but this is the .01%.”

    I don’t believe that is ever true.

  65. yae says:

    I think she may very well have embarrassed her incredibly powerful family to the point of…..

    Would the Johnson Co. risk their empire & tolerate this “child’s” public humiliation of their family’s “wholesomeness” or future profits and power?

    Gruesome.

    Now the whole “a person died now MORE RESTRICTIONS” on ANYTHING is DANGEROUS.You don’t make laws that keep others from getting needed pain medications because some people abuse them. And you don’t make doctors afraid to relieve pain from those suffering due to a few addicts. I am shocked.

  66. gg says:

    @ CYANN – I am so sorry to hear about your brother. My prayers are with you and your family at this time.

  67. jule says:

    It seems some people can handle drug/alcohol abuse better than others. I think lindsay Lohan could be this generations keith Richards….

  68. MooMooMooMooMoo says:

    @bella I can tell you from experience that it takes a very strong person to live the life of an addict, well it makes you one anyway. Bad things are constantly happening and you walk around in a state of anxiety & extreme shame and remorse most of the time. Addicts are not bad or weak they’ve just made mistakes and are predisposed to addiction. It isn’t a case of just stopping, if it were that easy.. it’s almost fucking impossible however hard you try.

  69. WTF?!? says:

    Iggles– if you’re in NYC and haven’t had to show ID, you’re only buying off the shelf. Try to get Sudafed or NyQuil with pseudoephedrine (the ingredient that unclogs your head)– they’re only available from behind the counter with ID.
    New York laws are among the most stringent.

  70. Whitey Fisk says:

    Firestarter, they really are limiting Drano, lye, etc? I had no idea!!

  71. bella says:

    Ria,

    I’m glad your husband was trained to believe patients are in pain unless proven otherwise, but in most of Southern California, that doesn’t appear to be the case. The one doctor who knew I was in pain and prescribed the medication I needed (not in excess, used per instructions) ended up being investigated by the DEA, and my new doctor is an insensitive, uncaring pr!ck.

    Pharmacy-jumpers (like you described) are as big a problem for legitimate pain patients as multiple-doctor-seeking drug abusers. They both make it harder on legitimate patients.

  72. bella says:

    Firestarter, what state do you live in? Just wondering, since I’m in CA, and I thought we had the market cornered in the regulated-product niche! lol

    Hey Whitey, how’s it going?

  73. bella says:

    Moo, I know several recovered addicts who are strong, now that they are no longer using. I don’t believe ALL addicts are bad or weak, and I know there is a genetic predisposition for some of them, but some also make the choice to use regardless of what their circumstances are or who it will hurt. Recreational drug use leads to more drug use leads to addiction. Best just not to start. Believe me, there have been times in my life when escaping the current situation (at the time) via drugs or alcohol would have been much preferable to muddling through on my own. That’s exactly why I wouldn’t use them. Too tempting to keep using once you start.

  74. Firestarter says:

    @Bella- I am in Missoui. If you go to any hardware store or Lowe’s in my county and the neighboring ones, they have GIANT posters of all the things meth producers buy posted by the registers. If the clerks see you buying more than two things on the list, they are obligated to report you to the authorities.

    @Whitey- Yes. I bought some drain opener at Lowe’s about 6-8 months ago and when they rang it up they asked for my address, home phone. I asked why, the clerk said “Because they keep it on file, they are regulating it”

    I know that up towards Hannibal, Mo, where I have some friends, they said they had to show ID when they bought a bunch of Woolite carpet cleaner once. My friend asked what the deal was, and they told her it was because people were buying it and using it in some part of the meth making process. That was a new one on me.

    Certain counties have data bases that keep track of your purchases and then the cops start to keep an eye on you. It is crazy here the last few years.

  75. Pained says:

    Being a pain management patient myself, I must say it is easier to get pain meds when you DON’T need them than when you do. It does take years of tests, pt and doctors before they will prescribe anything over a Vicodin. But the funny thing is, if you wait until your pain is unbearable and go to the ER frustrated, crying and in horrible pain… they will more than likely suggest a tox screen, their nice way of saying “Your pain isn’t real, I think your just a drug addict”. Therefore, when your not in as much pain, put together better and not displaying frustration outwardly, they deem you worthy of pain meds because they do not question your intent as you don’t “act” like a drug addict in their eyes.

    Every experience is different but this has been mine. I don’t know that any country has the right process for prescription meds but just like street drugs, if someone is an addict, they’ll find a way so why punish or hurt those who are trully hurting and deserving of such meds.

    Drug addiction is not controllable by anyone but the person suffering from it. Get real people, we can’t save anyone no matter how much we love them. They must save themselves, sad but true.

    Until you find yourself in unbearable, unlivable pain, you’ll never understand the life of a pain management patient.

  76. Aspie says:

    Tila Tequila is plain disgusting.

  77. Cindy Kennedy says:

    She adopted a child from Kazahstan two years ago, but the child is being cared for by her mother? This is another example of how celebrities think international adoption is a trendy fad. She adopted a child, then dumped it. How sad. I really think there should be stricter controls on international adoption.