A little less than four years ago, Brittany Murphy died, seemingly out of nowhere. Given her very young age (32), rumors quickly raged that drugs or bad decisions may have been involved, but after a thorough medical examination and toxicology tests, the coroner ruled the actress died from a combination of pneumonia, anemia and several over-the-counter drugs she may have been using to try and improve her health. So, case closed, right? Wrong, apparently. Her husband Simon Monjack, 40, bizarrely followed her into the afterlife just a few months afterwards from the same combination of pneumonia and anemia, and now, thanks to some new tests, Murphy’s dad is convinced there may have been something far seedier than bad luck in play.
According to The Examiner, a fresh analysis of Brittany’s hair, blood and tissue by an independent laboratory detected elevated levels of ten different metals. In a report detailing its findings, the technicians argued the unusual results point to either simultaneous and accidental exposure to a wide variety of metals or a third party intentionally exposing at least Murphy to the harmful substances.
Brit’s dad Angelo Bertolotti already seems one hundred percent on board with a poisoning theory. When asked about the report he commissioned, he vowed to work for as long and as hard as is needed in order to find real justice for his departed daughter and her husband. Assumedly, all of the media attention his claims have attracted will do some of that work, but without at least a theory as to who may have wanted these two dead, it’s hard to know if this story will have real legs, especially since the coroner's office isn’t backing down from its original pneumonia ruling. After all, people don’t just get poisoned for the hell of it. At least not usually.
It is utterly bizarre that two adults, neither of who was over forty-one could possibly die in the same house of the exact same natural causes within months of each other. Many, including Brittany’s mother, have publically discussed a theory involving mold exposure, which would make a whole lot of sense considering Murphy and Monjack shared a house for years. This poisoning thing, however, is a completely new path, and as of press time, it’s unclear whether the actress’ mother or Monjack’s family give the claims any credence at all.
Murphy was a talented woman with a bright career ahead of her. She had some down times, sure, but she was pulling it together near the end. All things being equal, I think everyone would rather have a clear and logical explanation for why she passed, but sometimes people just kick the bucket before we'd like to see them go. Their bodies just give out, and it has nothing to do with shady conspiracies or Professor Plum with poison in the Hollywood Hills.
We’ll keep you updated.
