Approximately one year ago, singer Chris Cornell tragically took his own life. His suicide followed shortly after a concert he performed in another state. Massachusetts residents may be interested in learning that Cornell’s family has recently filed a medical malpractice lawsuit against the singer’s doctor, accusing him of negligent prescription of drugs to the singer.
The lawsuit claims that the singer’s physician prescribed mind-altering and controlled substances over a two year period. The drugs prescribed involved Oxycodone and Ativan. The lawsuit claims that both drugs had the ability to impair the singer’s cognition, clouded his judgment and encouraged him to engage in dangerous behavior. The lawsuit claims that the doctor prescribed approximately 940 doses of Ativan to the singer between 2015 and 2017 despite the singer’s known addictive personality. The doctor has also been accused of making many of the prescriptions without seeing Cornell.
According to the lawsuit, the singer’s wife spoke with the singer on the phone prior to his death. She reported his words were slurred, and other comments, including an admission of taking extra Ativan, made her worry for him. She alerted hotel staff to check on her husband, but it was too late. An autopsy reported that Ativan was present in the singer’s system.
It is certainly heartbreaking and painful to watch a family member struggle with any type of addiction, and understandably difficult to learn that the family member may not have received the appropriate medical care needed. Massachusetts’s medical malpractice attorneys understand it is life-changing to lose a loved one unexpectedly to death. When a death may have been prevented, presumed negligent parties may be held financially accountable in civil court.
