Celebrity / Music

What We Really Know About Whitney Houston’s Death

Several years later, there is still so much mystery and unanswered questions surrounding Whitney Houston's death.

by Michelle Kapusta

Published on July 3, 2018

3 min read

Whitney Houston’s death shocked the public. | Scott Gries/ImageDirect/Getty Images

Several years after the world learned about the shocking death of Whitney Houston, there is still a lot of mystery surrounding what took place in her Beverly Hills hotel room on February 11, 2012.

So much of what was in the coroner’s report shocked her fans like the fact that the powerhouse singer had mild emphysema and that she wore dentures, the latter is common with drug and alcohol abusers. But more questions remain. A few of the unanswered questions her fans had long pondered included: Who had supplied her the drugs? Why had she taken them? Was someone else in the room with her? Was Houston murdered?

Here are some other surprising details from the coroner’s report that still have us scratching our heads. Plus, what the person who found her really thinks happened to her as well as what Bobby Brown believes his ex-wife died from.

Cause of death

The coroner’s 42-page report concluded that the “I Will Always Love You” vocalist’s death was attributed to accidental drowning, heart disease, and cocaine use. An open bottle of champagne along with a spoon containing what was described as a “white crystal-like substance” were found at the scene and the toxicology report stated that traces of Xanax, Benadryl, the muscle relaxant Flexeril, and marijuana were in Houston’s system.

This was a shock to her sister-in-law, Pat Houston, and some of the star’s other relatives because they believed that the pop diva was no longer using in her final days.

“We are saddened to learn of the toxicology results, although we are glad to now have closure,” the family said in a statement to the Associated Press.

Items missing from the room and her purse

Another surprising detail listed in the report was that it noted there were items missing from Houston’s room as well as her wallet.

“[The] decedent’s California driver’s license had been removed from the wallet, which was inside the purse, prior to my arrival,” the report read. “Also prior to my arrival, the majority of the decedent’s prescription medication bottles had been removed from a brown bag that was on top of the table in the southeast corner of the living room, and then placed on top of that same table.”

Whitney Houston singing — Whitney Houston at Radio City Music Hall | Storm/Online USA, Inc.

Abrasions on her face

Something else suspicious mentioned in the report was the fact that Houston had wounds on her face when she was found in the bathtub. Specifically, there were “two superficial abrasions to the left side of her forehead, and there was a superficial abrasion to the left side of the bridge of her nose.”

Forensic pathologist Cyril Wecht explained that the water in the tub was so hot at 93.5 degrees that he doesn’t think Houston was sitting in the there but somehow fell in and accidentally drowned.

“I think that she fell into this very hot water, that accounts for a little bruise that was seen in the left forehead area, some other pressure markings on the face, including the slight laceration of the lip, and the fact that she is lying face down,” he said.

Her assistant insists there was foul play

The very person who found her says there was foul play.

Houston’s assistant, Mary Jones, discovered the superstar in the tub around 3:30 p.m. local time. Jones recalled that she stepped out of the suite to pick out a dress option for Houston and when she returned the “I Have Nothing” artist was facedown in the bathtub.

“Somebody was in the room with her, had given her these drugs, and had found her drowned in the bath, switched off the taps and left the room,” Jones said. However, she has never been able to identify who that may have been.