Naomi Judd’s newly revealed autopsy has confirmed what her daughter Ashley previously disclosed about her famous mom’s death — the iconic country singer died by suicide. Per documents obtained by HollywoodLife, the medical examiner of Williamson County in Tennessee officially stated that her cause of death was suicide by a gunshot wound to the head, noting Naomi’s past history with anxiety and depression. The docs also confirmed that she left a “note with suicidal connotations.”
Naomi was 76 at the time of her death on Saturday, April 30 — just one day before her Country Music Hall of Fame induction. Younger daughter and Double Jeopardy actress Ashley, 54, reportedly found her mother. “Today we sisters experienced a tragedy,” wrote both Wynonna and Ashley via their social media accounts the same day. “We lost our beautiful mother to the disease of mental illness. We are shattered. We are navigating profound grief and know that as we loved her, she was loved by her public.”
The family, including Naomi’s bereaved husband Larry Strickland, reportedly released a statement. “We have always shared openly both the joys of being family as well its sorrows, too. One part of our story is that our matriarch was dogged by an unfair foe,” the statement read, per USA Today. “The toxicology and autopsy reports are as we expected. She was treated for PTSD and bipolar disorder, to which millions of Americans can relate. We continue to reel from this devastation. We appreciate respectful privacy as we, her widower and children, mourn.”
Naomi Judd rose to fame primarily as one half of the country music duo The Judds, alongside daughter Wynonna, 58. “She loved with her whole heart and I know she would be so touched by the outpouring of love in all of our hearts tonight, especially the love towards her daughters,” Good Morning America host Robin Roberts said at a memorial for the beloved singer on May 15.
If you or someone you know is in crisis, call the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline at 1-800-273-TALK (8255), or contact the Crisis Text Line by texting TALK to 741741.