Prince’s Family Suing Illinois Hospital, Walgreens For Wrongful Death
The family of the late music icon Prince filed a wrongful death lawsuit against the parties they believe caused the singer's demise.
No Grounds For Criminal Charges
The results of the investigation, released last week, confirmed that prosecutors would not press criminal charges in relation to the singer's death. As a result, his family decided to sue the hospital where Prince received treatment a week before his death, as well as pharmacy giant Walgreens.
The hotly-anticipated results of the investigation left many in shock and disbelief, especially after widespread coverage of Prince's addiction to pain medication.
"We simply do not have sufficient evidence to charge anyone with a crime related to Prince's death," investigators said.
His Death Was Preventable
Prince overdosed on a flight back in April 2016, forcing the aircraft to make an emergency landing. His family's suit alleges that the hospital where he received treatment after the incident did not handle the situation properly. This, they believe, led to his untimely death.
Prince's estate also alleges that two employees misidentified the pill the singer took prior to the overdose. The drug in question was later revealed to be a counterfeit containing fentanyl, the fatal medication to which the singer was revealed to be addicted.
After the two-year probe into Prince's death, prosecutors announced on Thursday that they found that the singer passed away after taking a black market pill containing fentanyl. Investigators could not establish how Prince acquired the pills. Therefore, they can't charge anybody for his death.
Prince's family's lawsuit alleges that the hospital could have conducted further examination of the pill and they could have established that it was a counterfeit. Doing so could have saved the singer's life. People closest to the late singer believe he didn't realize what he was ingesting.
Unknown Substance
Prosecutors advised last week that Prince likely believed he was taking prescription drugs such as Vicodin, instead of the black market version containing fentanyl, a substance that is fifty times stronger than heroin.
The suit also accuses two Walgreens stores of providing narcotic prescription meds to the singer for an invalid medical purpose.
"Prince's family wishes, through its investigation, to shed additional light on what happened to Prince. At the same time, further light on the opiate epidemic will hopefully help the fight to save lives," the family's attorney said in a statement.
Prince was carried off his private jet barely breathing after the emergency landing in Illinois. His longtime friend and employee Kirk Johnson, who took out prescriptions on his behalf, told paramedics he might have taken a Percocet after his concert that night.
The late performer was said to be dealing with intense pain following years of touring and was self-medicating as a result.
