David Carradine's death not suicide
- 00:01:00
- ITN
David Carradine's death not suicide
Forensics experts investigating the death of actor David Carrradine say he did not take his own life. Speculation about the cause of death has swirled since a chambermaid at the luxury Swissotel Nai Lert Park Hotel in Bangkok discovered his body hanging in the closet of his room on June 4. A Thai newspaper published a graphic photo of the death scene that police said appears to be a leaked forensics image. Thai police initially said they suspected Carradine's death was a suicide but later conceded it could have been accidental. Their description - that the actor's body was found naked, with ropes around his neck, wrist and genitals - fuelled speculation that he was killed while engaging in a dangerous sex practice called auto-erotic asphyxiation. A pathologist hired by the Carradine family concluded the Kung Fu star did not commit suicide but said that more information was needed from Thai investigators before the cause of death could be determined. Thai authorities said on June 5 that it would take about three weeks for the results of their autopsy to be released. Medical examiners in the US and Canada generally classify auto-erotic asphyxiation deaths as accidental.
ITN | June 12, 2009
