Jimi Hendrix's death on September 18, 1970, in London, marked a tragic end to the life of a musical icon. While the immediate cause of death was determined to be asphyxia due to inhaling vomit while intoxicated with barbiturates, the circumstances surrounding his passing have been shrouded in inconsistencies and have led to multiple investigations. This article explores the post-mortem findings, the coroner's verdict, and the subsequent inquiries,
highlighting the conflicting accounts that have fueled debate for decades.
The Post-Mortem Examination and Coroner's Verdict
Coroner Gavin Thurston ordered a post-mortem examination on Hendrix's body, which was performed on September 21 by forensic pathologist Professor Robert Donald Teare. Teare reported that Hendrix was "well nourished and muscular." He noted a quarter-inch scar on Hendrix's left wrist but found "no stigmata of [intravenous] drug addiction," emphasizing that such marks, once present, never disappear. Although Teare observed a widely dilated right side of Hendrix's heart, he found no evidence of valvular heart disease. He also discovered a partially collapsed left lung and 400 ml of fluid in Hendrix's chest, with both lungs congested and vomit present in the smaller bronchi.Thurston completed the inquest on September 28, concluding that Hendrix aspirated his own vomit and died of asphyxia while intoxicated with barbiturates. Finding no evidence of suicide and citing "insufficient evidence of the circumstances," the coroner recorded an open verdict. Monika Dannemann, who was with Hendrix in his final hours, later stated that Hendrix had taken nine of her prescribed Vesparax sleeping tablets, which was 18 times the recommended dosage. Dr. John Bannister, one of the medical registrars who attempted to resuscitate Hendrix, later suggested that the murder theory was plausible due to the extraordinary volume of wine found on Hendrix's body and in his lungs and stomach.
Conflicting Accounts and Media Response
In the immediate aftermath, conflicting accounts emerged. On September 18, Eric Burdon, who arrived at the Samarkand Hotel before the ambulance crew, found Hendrix already dead. Concerned about police finding drugs, Burdon collected incriminating evidence and found a poem Hendrix had written, "The Story of Life." Assuming it was a suicide note, Burdon made comments to the press suggesting Hendrix had committed suicide, a claim he later recanted, stating he "misread the note" and "didn't understand what the situation was." Dannemann, however, claimed Hendrix told her to keep the poem forever as a story about them.Soon after Hendrix was pronounced dead, a hospital spokesperson told the press, "We don't know where, how, or why he died, but he died of an overdose." This led to sensationalized headlines in London and New York newspapers. Hendrix's public relations manager, Les Perrin, confirmed his death on Dutch radio. On September 19, Dannemann told a German tabloid that she and Hendrix were engaged and that she had given him the sleeping tablets because he couldn't sleep. Her brother, Klaus-Peter Dannemann, corroborated this on September 20, stating Monika told him Hendrix took nine sleeping tablets, intending to sleep for a day and a half, and did not intend to kill himself.
Inconsistencies and the Scotland Yard Inquiry
Tony Brown, author of *Jimi Hendrix: The Final Days*, noted that Dannemann's account of Hendrix's final days changed frequently. In the days following his death, she gave two significantly different accounts of the morning of September 18. Initially, she told Police Sergeant John Shaw that she woke at 11 a.m., found Hendrix covered in vomit and breathing noisily, and noticed ten sleeping tablets missing. In a later statement to the coroner's office, she said they went to sleep around 7 a.m., she woke at 11 a.m., found him covered in vomit, and discovered nine Vesparax tablets missing.Further inconsistencies arose regarding her actions and the presence of others. Dannemann's statements about her wake-up time varied from 9 a.m. to 11 a.m. She also initially failed to mention leaving to buy cigarettes. While Dannemann claimed Hendrix was alive when placed in the ambulance and that she rode with him, the ambulance crew denied her presence. Paramedics Reg Jones and John Saua stated they found Hendrix alone in the flat at 11:27 a.m., fully clothed and seemingly already dead, with the vomit dry. Jones noted that Hendrix's bowels and bladder had released their contents before their arrival. Police officer Ian Smith also disputed Dannemann's claim of being present, stating the ambulance crew called the police because no one else was there and the circumstances seemed "odd, suspicious."
In 1992, Hendrix's former girlfriend Kathy Etchingham arranged a private investigation into his death and presented the findings to UK authorities, requesting the coroner's inquest be reopened. Scotland Yard conducted a several-month inquiry, interviewing all interested parties. Despite officials' confidence that the request would be granted, the investigation proved inconclusive in 1993. Attorney General Sir Nicholas Lyell decided against proceeding, partly due to the excessive time that had passed since Hendrix's death. The London Ambulance Service also issued an official statement in 1992, confirming that no one else was at the flat when they arrived, nor did anyone accompany them in the ambulance.
