Casey Johnson, the troubled heiress to the Johnson and Johnson family, was found dead in L.A yesterday. She was just 30 years old. Johnson grew up as part of Hollywood’s elite and was best friends with Paris Hilton as a child. She was originally considered for the role of Paris’ sidekick on The Simple Life, which she passed on and later claimed to regret. Johnson made headlines recently for her engagement to prolific twitterer Tila Tequila. She was also arrested a month ago after robbing an ex girlfriend’s home. There were stories that Johnson was broke and living in opulent squalor after her family cut her off because she refused to go to rehab. Johnston adopted a daughter from Kazakhstan two years ago, but the child was being cared for by Johnson’s mother.
It’s rumored that Johnson died from a prescription drug overdose although no cause has yet been determined and police say foul play is not suspected. TMZ reports that she was dead for several days before she was found. Her last message on Twitter was posted December 29.
Casey Johnson, the heiress to the Johnson & Johnson fortune who recently made tabloid headlines with a purported engagement to reality star Tila Tequila, has died at age 30.
Her death was announced by Tequila on her Twitter page and confirmed by police.
“Everyone please pray 4 my Wifey Casey Johnson,” Tequila wrote. “She has passed away. Thank u for all ur love and support but I will be offline to be w/ family.”‘
Los Angeles police and firefighters were called to a house at 11:51 a.m. Monday. Johnson was pronounced dead at the scene.
“It appears to be a natural death,” says police Officer Sara Faden. “There’s no evidence of foul play. A toxicology report from the coroner’s office will proceed next.”
Johnson, who leaves a toddler daughter Ava whom she had adopted, was the great-great granddaughter of the founder of the pharmaceutical giant, and the daughter of New York Jets owner Robert Wood Johnson.
An openly gay socialite, Johnson had a knack for attracting paparazzi – and trouble. A nasty fight with ex-girlfriend Courtenay Semel, daughter of former Yahoo chief Terry Semel, reportedly resulted in Johnson’s hair catching on fire last October. Then in November, she was arrested for allegedly breaking into another former girlfriend’s house.
In December, Tequila announced the pair were engaged. “Tonight, my beautiful girlfriend has just asked me to marry her and check out this rock,” the lingerie-wearing Tequila said in an Internet video. “Bam! That is a 17-carat diamond ring from my baby.”
[From People]
That’s just really sad and so pointless. This woman needed help and she wouldn’t accept it from her family and ended up dying. This leaves a pit in my stomach. I didn’t know this person and she had a privileged life and kind of squandered it away, but no one should die so young. Again another young person has died from a likely prescription drug overdose, either accidental or intentional. We need stricter regulations on prescription drugs in the US so that they’re not so easy to obtain and abuse. I’m not saying it will stop everyone from taking them recreationally, but it could save lives and help some people clean up before it’s too late.
Photos below credit: WENN
