Anne Heche Autopsy Answers Lingering Question About What Was In Actor's System At Time Of Crash
Anne Heche tragically died on August 11, 2022, and more details surrounding the unexpected accident have been revealed from her autopsy. On August 5, Heche crashed her car into a residential home and was burned in her car's fire before being rushed to the hospital. The actor was in a coma and later died as a result of injuries sustained from the crash, per Us Weekly.
"Anne will be deeply missed," her friends and family's statement to People read. "But she lives on through her beautiful sons, her iconic body of work, and her passionate advocacy. Her bravery for always standing in her truth, spreading her message of love and acceptance, will continue to have a lasting impact."
Heche's final resting place is the Hollywood Forever Cemetery alongside fellow acting royalty. "We are convinced our mom would love the site we have chosen for her," her two sons, Atlas and Homer, wrote in a statement (via Entertainment Tonight). "It's beautiful, serene, and she will be among her Hollywood peers." Now, some lingering questions have been answered about the tragic incident.
Anne Heche's blood contained traces of cocaine, but was not impaired
The final toxicology report from actor Anne Heche found no alcohol in her system at the time of the fatal crash but did detect trace amounts of cocaine, per documents obtained by TMZ. The publication reported that investigators collected her blood as evidence at the scene of the accident. When analyzing the sample, the coroner found "benzoylecgonine, an inactive metabolite of cocaine."
The coroner ensured this finding does not mean that Heche was under the influence of cocaine, and there was "no evidence of impairment by illicit substances" when the crash happened, per USA Today. According to the American Addiction Centers, a person's gender, body weight, health, and many other factors can affect how long a drug remains in your system.
Heche had visited a hair salon just minutes before her crash and purchased a wig from the store's owner, Richard Glass. In an exclusive interview with Entertainment Tonight, Glass recounted how nothing seemed off with the actor. "She wasn't speaking in cursive, I say that when people are impaired," he explained. "They speak in cursive like slurring your words. But she wasn't, she was very, very cordial. Very personable and very polite."