Popsquire

Although appearing in the infamous 2006 Heath Ledger drug video, a woman has filed a lawsuit as “Jane Doe” against the men who filmed and distributed the footage to Entertainment Tonight. While you can read the entire lawsuit for fraud and invasion of privacy here, it can be summed up at paragraph 25 of the complaint as follows:

In short, employees of Splash drugged Mr. Ledger, a known drug user, and then videotaped him without his consent for the purpose of damaging his reputation and to make money. Plaintiff was also victimized and duped by Defendants so that Defendants could create a story by getting this actor to take drugs and then secretly film him and exploit his illness.

Popsquire’s perspective…

Jane Doe’s attorneys clearly wish to paint her as the victim in a plot to exploit Heath Ledger, but Popsquire sees it differently. By seeking to recover “ill-gotten gains,” Jane Doe really is looking to share in any profits from the video.

If she really was opposed to supplying Ledger with drugs or filming his use, then she could have stepped in at the time and stopped the activities back in 2006. However, she did nothing!

Unless Jane Doe intends to donate any money she gains to charity or a drug rehabilitation center, Popsquire cannot get behind her on this one. She’s nothing but a Karma Chameleon!

TMZ has obtained a copy of Heath Ledger’s will.  Finalized before the birth of his daughter Matilda, the will leaves everything to Heath’s parents and siblings.  Although Popsquire is proud of Heath for having a will at all, it is extremely important for everyone to update, update, update!

If you don’t update your will every year, you should at least do so along with any major life event, including: (1) the birth of a child; (2) the death of anyone listed in the will; (3) marriage; (4) divorce; (5) adoption; and/or (6) a significant change in assets or income.

Just when Popsquire figured that the Heath Ledger story would not present any further collisions between pop culture and law, TV Guide reports that the DEA “has launched an investigation into how Ledger obtained the multiple prescription drugs that led to his accidental overdose.”

Of course, this makes Popsquire wonder why the DEA did not launch an investigation into the death of Anna Nicole Smith, who also died from prescription drug combination approximately one year ago.

Hmm…

According to the NY Post, an unidentified man pretending to be Heath Ledger’s father has: (1) contacted Tom Cruise and John Travolta; (2) spoken with the doctor who performed Heath’s autopsy; and (3) even duped the Manhattan funeral home where the tragic actor’s body was held before being flown to Los Angeles into booking him rooms at the nearby Carlyle hotel.

Popsquire’s perspective…

This is sick and smacks of (1) fraud and (2) larceny by false pretenses. In New York, larceny by false pretenses generally refers to obtaining property — e.g., a hotel room paid for by someone else — by misrepresenting facts relating to the promise.

Popsquire can think of only one phrase to express how he feels about this…Oh My Gosh…by the Basement Jaxx…

According to CNN, an autopsy was unable to determine Heath Ledger’s cause of death.  Next step – a cause-of-death examination, which may take approximately two weeks and still may not provide any answers.

Popsquire pop quiz: what types of evidence do examiners analyze to determine whether a death is caused by suicide or overdose?

Whether a death is caused by accidental overdose or suicide is extremely difficult to determine.  Factors to consider include, but are not limited to: (1) amount/type of drugs in system; (2) existence/absence of a suicide note; (3) history of drug use; (4) history of depression or mental illness; (5) existence of medical problems; and (6) recent communications.

Notably, most deaths involving drugs are not labeled suicide, especially when someone has a history of drug problems.  

Popsquire’s perspective… 

Popsquire believes that Ledger’s death will not be deemed a suicide and even may not be deemed related to drug abuse, especially given reports that he also may have been suffering from pneumonia.  Most of all, Popsquire hopes there are answers, especially for Heath’s family.