Wednesday, March 26, 2008

About the Painkillers Found in Heath Ledger's Blood ...

By Alex Constantine

Also see: "Heath Ledger: Broker Than a Joker?"
Heath Ledger's death is not as cut-and-dried as it may seem. I had an inadvertent tip-off before his death was even reported in the newspapers, and a geneticist in the pharmaceutical industry explained to me the precise interaction of drugs in his system and effects on the brain - this has led me to conclude that Ledger's death is more complicated than it seems. I will explain, but am waiting for more details to support my early, undocumented conclusions, a position I constantly find myself in - events often tip me to a murder before most people would understand why those events are significant. (An example from anti-fascist researcher Mae Brussell's life to illustrate: After the Watergate break-ins, a single-paragraph story appeared in the press naming a few Cubans involved. Mae knew those names from her study of the Kennedy assassination, but they meant nothing to the average reader - to explain it to the uninitiated, she had to sit down and write a long article detailing who the culprits were, how they were connected to the CIA and Nixon and the murder of Kennedy, Bay of Pigs, etc. She scooped the Washington Post, and Woodward never explored Watergate to the depths, as she did. Who would believe what she KNEW to be true? A few simple names spoke to Mae, but you had to know the context, the historical details, THEN FULLY DOCUMENT ((to satisfy the skeptics and frustrate professional debunkers)) AND EXPLAIN THEM - and that took some effort to cut through the cover stories and assemble the entire conspiracy chain - when a few details were all she personally needed to know.)

Always be suspicious of the drug "cocktail" explanation - certain agencies of government in this well-groomed democracy have thoroughly studied the interactions of drugs and know how to make them lethal. When a "cocktail" is reported as the cause of death, always scratch deeper for information before dismissing it as an accident. Doubt me? Look up the death of newspaper columnist Dorothy Kilgallen some 40 years ago (the earliest case I know), research it completely, then come back with eyes wide open.

This approach to murder appears to be accidental, and is a favored means of killing and getting away with it. " ... the source did not say whether any wrongdoing is involved ... 'We don't know yet.'" And neither does anyone else, especially the press. There were two potent painkillers in Ledger's system - why? He was a neurotic, high-anxiety insomniac. Don't settle too soon into a fixed opinion based on appearances and media "expert" opinion formation. Some of the deeper issues are already starting to emerge, so keep an open mind on this one and be receptive to information contradicting the initial media reports.

Ulitmately, the DEA cleared Ledger's doctors (investigated in the article below), but the "Source of Actor's Oxycontin and Vicodin Still Unknown."
http://www.mtv.com/movies/news/articles/1582572/story.jhtml

"According to the Post, the DEA has concluded that, although the doctors met with the Dark Knight" star, they were not the source of either medication." If these painkillers weren't prescribed by Ledger's physicians, how did they get into his bloodstream?

New York Daily News: "At issue is whether or not the powerful painkiller were prescribed legally," says the newspaper. Is this still at issue, or has the matter been dropped?

On March 3rd, the press reported: "The investigation over the Australian actor's death continues." ...

Police investigators still do not know how Heath Ledger managed to obtain Oxycontin and Vicodin

"Bottles for sleeping pills and anti-anxiety drugs were found in the Australian actor's New York apartment but none for the extra-strong painkillers."
http://www.nowmagazine.co.uk/celeb_news/Police_still_unsure_how_Heath_Ledger_obtained_powerful_painkillers_article_195610.html

No bottles for the painkillers were found. Those words are clear enough. Compare this report with: "Heath Ledger, the 28-year-old actor was found dead on January 22nd in his downtown Manhattan apartment surrounded by bottles of Oxycontin and Vicodin."
http://www.enews20.com/news_Heath_Ledgers_Death_Still_a_Mystery_for_Feds_06254.html

No bottles for these drugs turned up in Heath Ledger's possession, according to most press reports filed in early March. ... Did he store them in his pocket and take them all at once? ... They weren't prescribed, and this reinforces the statement that no bottles were found. Where did the painkillers come from, how were they dispensed?

There has been no answer to these questions since they were posed a few weeks ago by the DEA. This case is still wide open.

Reporters generally speak with certainty of Heath's "accidental" drug interaction, but it was reported on March 3rd: "Heath Ledger’s Death Still a Mystery for Feds."
http://www.enews20.com/news_Heath_Ledgers_Death_Still_a_Mystery_for_Feds_06254.html

"After an in depth investigation by the Drug Enforcement Administration (DEA) by reviewing their records and questioning [the doctors], it was [found] that their prescription didn’t endanger Ledger’s life."

So the painkillers are isolated as the cause of death - and there were no prescriptions to account for them. The prescriptions that he did have in his possession responded to known physical symptoms, but the painkillers appear to have been extraneous.

More to come.
•••••••
Heath Ledger's Doctors Under Scrutiny
FEBRUARY 29, 2008

THE US Drug Enforcement Agency has begun investigating a doctor in California and another in Texas in the matter of Heath Ledger's death, People.com has confirmed.

The Australian actor, 28, was found dead in his downtown New York apartment on January 22.

An autopsy - whose results were announced earlier this month - blamed an accidental mixture of prescription drugs, said New York City's Chief Medical Examiner.

"We are investigating doctors in Los Angeles and Texas with regard to Ledger's prescriptions," the source tells People.com

However, the source did not say whether any wrongdoing is involved, saying, "We don't know yet.

"The agents were there this week, and we are waiting to hear from them."

The doctors in question are thought to have supplied Ledger with Oxycontin and Vicodin, law enforcement sources tell New York's Daily News.

"At issue is whether or not the powerful painkiller were prescribed legally," says the newspaper.

The subpoenaing of Ledger's autopsy results by the Drug Enforcement Administration was reported shortly after the findings of the report were announced.

On February 6, it was said that the DEA would look into the source of the actor's prescriptions.

Besides Oxycodone and Vicodin (also known as Hydrocodone), autopsy results also showed that Ledger's system contained Diazepam (commonly called Valium), as well as Temazepam, which treats anxiety or sleeplessness; Alprazolam (also known as Xanax); and Doxylamine, a sedating antihistamine often used as a sleeping aid. ...

Investigation goes across two US states.

Copyright 2007 News Limited.

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