Loveland – When 12-year-old Nikole Berthoud died earlier this year just hours after police cited her for underage drinking, residents feared that perhaps alcohol poisoning caused the young girl’s death.
A complete autopsy report released Thursday reveals that Berthoud did not die of alcohol poisoning. But the reality may be just as troubling.
Berthoud, the report concludes, died of a heart condition that is frequently associated with drug addicts. The damage to her heart, broadly called cardiomyopathy, is most often seen in people who use stimulants, such as methamphetamine and cocaine.
Furthermore, the report says: “The investigation revealed that the living environment provided for this child included exposure and access to a variety of illegal and deadly drugs.”
The report does not say when she might have been exposed to the drugs. No drugs were found at her home when she died.
The mystery of how Nicole Berthoud died does not end here.
The autopsy found no evidence of drugs in her system and only the slightest trace of alcohol. Berthoud’s grandfather said Thursday that the house where his daughter lived before her death is clean.
Detective Paul Arreola said Thursday he cannot determine whether Berthoud ever used drugs or whether she was merely exposed to them. Arreola also said that he is not investigating Berthoud’s family for drugs because he can’t tell when any exposure might have occurred.
“It’s very hard for us to find out where, how, who,” he said. “There’s really no lead here.”
So how did Nikole develop the heart of a drug user?
Arreola said investigators may never know. It could have been anything from just being around a couple people using drugs to using drugs herself.
“I’m trying to figure out what would it take,” he said. “Unfortunately there’s really no concrete answer to what it would take.”
The coroner’s investigator in the case, Dean Beers, told The Associated Press that simple exposure could have been enough.
“It’s like secondhand smoking,” he said. “You can be exposed and suffer from lung cancer even if you’ve never smoked.”
Medical authorities on Thursday said it’s likely that a 12-year-old would suffer cardiomyopathy because of a genetic problem or through the ingestion of substances such as cocaine or methamphetamines.
Dr. Michael Dobersen, the Arapahoe County coroner, said it’s unlikely exposure alone could cause cardiomyopathy. Dr. Mori Krantz, a cardiologist with Denver Health Medical Center, said sometimes the diagnosis comes with uncertainty.
“In a lot of cases we don’t know why people have it,” she said.
Berthoud’s grandfather, Mike Berthoud, said Nikole wasn’t using drugs, and he thinks she must have been exposed to drugs at friends’ houses. He said Nikole’s father and his ex-wife struggled with drug addictions a few years ago. But, he said, both are clean now.
He said both he and his son have had trouble sleeping since Nikole’s death.
“It’s one of those things that hits you,” he said. “It should have never happened.”
What most experts agree upon is that alcohol can worsen cardiomyopathy.
On the day she died, Jan. 14, Nikole and a couple of friends were cited for underage drinking. Paramedics showed up, checked the girls and released them to their parents. That evening, Nikole began complaining of stomach pains, her grandfather said. Her condition worsened until she collapsed.
By the time she arrived at McKee Medical Center, she had died.
Arreola said Thursday that authorities are on the verge of charging someone with providing alcohol to Berthoud and her friends. He wouldn’t name the suspect but said it’s an “acquaintance” of the girls.
Berthoud’s grandfather said he will probably always have unanswered questions about Nikole’s death. But he wants it to provide lessons to others.
“You hope kids – other kids in the school – would realize the mistakes that can happen with alcohol and drugs,” Berthoud said.
Staff writer Monte Whaley contributed to this report.
Staff writer John Ingold can be reached at 720-929-0898 or jingold@denverpost.com.
