SAN BERNARDINO, Calif. — Rodney King had been drinking and was on drugs when he plunged into a swimming pool and accidentally drowned June 17, a coroner’s report released Thursday concluded.
The report confirmed a previous police conclusion that King died by accident, and the case will be closed, said Rialto police Capt. Randy DeAnda.
“It concludes our investigation,” he said. “Basically, our investigation revealed the same conclusion, and now that we have the toxicology, it basically reinforces that.”
King, whose videotaped beating by Los Angeles police in 1991 led to deadly rioting, had long struggled with addiction.
The San Bernardino County coroner’s report listed the cause of death as drowning “and the contributing cause was combined with ethanol (alcohol) and multiple drug toxicity,” DeAnda said.
Toxicology tests showed that King had a blood-alcohol level of 0.06 and amounts of PCP, cocaine and marijuana in his system, the captain said.
