New Details in Prince Death Investigation

By Jeralyn, Section Media
Posted on Wed May 04, 2016 at 09:29:40 PM EST
Tags: Prince (all tags)

Share This: Digg!

The Minneapolis Star Tribune reports new details in the investigation into the death of Prince. It sounds like an intervention was in the works.

Andrew Kornfeld was one of the three people at Paisley Park the morning Prince was discovered in his elevator. Kornfeld works for a rehab facility in California owned by his father, Dr. Howard Kornfeld. Prince's staff called Dr. Howard Kornfeld the night of April 20, saying there was a "grave medical emergency." Kornfeld couldn't go to MN immediately, so he sent his son to explain the program to Prince, and arranged for a local doctor to do an initial assessment. Dr. Kornfeld intended to fly to MN the next day.

Andrew Kornfeld took the redeye to MN and got to Prince's house the next morning, intending to begin the process of explaining his father's program and convince Prince to enter treatment there. In other words, an intervention. But he never got to meet with Prince.[More...]

When Kornfeld arrived at Prince's house the next morning (April 21), his staff wasn't sure where Prince was. When Prince was found in the elevator, the staffers were so distraught that Andrew was the one to call 911 (This explains why the 911 caller at Prince's house didn't know the address.

Would Prince have agreed to the intervention and go to rehab?

< Navy Seals in Gunfight Against ISIS | Rolling Stones Tell Trump to Stop Using Their Songs >

Legal

Nothing on this site should be construed as legal advice. TalkLeft does not give legal advice.

TalkLeft is not responsible for and often disagrees with material posted in the comments section. Read at your own risk.

New Details in Prince Death Investigation | 37 comments (37 topical)

Readers Must Login or Create an Account to Comment

This documentary on ... (5.00 / 1) (#1)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:09:24 PM EST

... America's recent heroin epidemic created by the over-prescription of opium based pain-killers is a must watch. Frontline/PBS

my feelings.. (5.00 / 1) (#4)
by linea on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:25:36 PM EST

drug addiction is sad and all but i'm opposed to the current trend of denying people relief from terrible pain because of a concern that some people will abuse their medication. it's insidious.

also, as far as i'm aware, there is absolutely no connection between any doctor's prescription and famous billionaire musician Prince Nelson's drug usage.


From what I read initially, ... (5.00 / 2) (#7)
by Donald from Hawaii on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:42:28 PM EST

... Prince was having issues with what sounded like a degenerative hip condition, which was apparently causing him a lot of pain. He was initially prescribed pain medication to deal with it. Hip problems are certainly common enough ailments, usually associated with aging, and Prince was after all in his mid-50s. But whether that's what triggered the chain of events which led to his demise from an apparent overdose, I really couldn't tell you.

The addictive qualities of opiates are such that if you are prescribed them for whatever reason, your physician really needs to closely monitor your dosage and track your progress / condition. I'm sure there are a few of us here who've had family members or close friends who've been prescribed opiates, and who perhaps subsequently had to add substance abuse and addiction to their list of ailments.

Aloha.


Not in mood to Google.... (none / 0) (#6)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:35:23 PM EST

but Prince had some sort of injury that got him on his prescription injury. Plus, if you watch the documentary I linked, big-pharma touted that they could prescribe these pain-killers without risk of addiction when they were full of cr@p. Also, a less/non-addictive pain relief canniboid based pain reliever is showing to be very effective.


: Fine, you made me google... (none / 0) (#8)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:42:33 PM EST

it's TMZ, but they've apparently been correct with their reporting on Prince's death so far.

Completely agree (none / 0) (#21)
by Militarytracy on Thu May 05, 2016 at 07:42:09 PM EST

this site opposes the (5.00 / 1) (#9)
by Jeralyn on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:16:59 PM EST

war on drugs and the war on pain doctors. You are free to state your opposite opinion, but please do not link to television shows that promote that point of view. No shilling allowed here.

Millions of Americans live in chronic pain and need medication, including opiates. The DEA's incessant war on pain meds and pain doctors is hurting chronic pain patients.

Prosecutors and law enforcement agents are not doctors. They should not decide how many pills someone can take. Doctors should not be intimidated into under-prescribing for fear they will be prosecuted.

The behavior of one pill manufacturer in Kentucky should not be grounds to restrict all pain medication.

If ibuprofen or aspirin works for you when you get a root canal or have a tooth pulled or have surgery, great. Others are not so lucky, and prescriptions for pain meds should be between them and and their doctor, free of intimidation.

Pain Doctors Under Fire -

Feds' Drug War Hurts Chronic Pain Patients

Charging Doctors as Drug Dealers

A Warning for Pain Management Physicians

Pain Doctor Sentenced to 25 Years

Bush Admin. to Crack Down on Painkiller Abuse

Even a Bush appointee can only take so much

White House Announces New Prescription Drug Abuse Plan


Amen and thank you. (5.00 / 1) (#17)
by MileHi Hawkeye on Thu May 05, 2016 at 09:00:33 AM EST

I'm tired of being treated like a criminal every time I go to the pharmacy to fill my pain medications Rx's.

If these people sent even one day with the kind of pain I have to endure, they wouldn't be so judgmental, guaranteed.


MileHi, just go to (none / 0) (#20)
by fishcamp on Thu May 05, 2016 at 07:22:59 PM EST

the drive up window like I do. My credit card is registered at Walgreens, so I don't even have to sign.


: There aren't any. (none / 0) (#31)
by MileHi Hawkeye on Fri May 06, 2016 at 12:11:11 PM EST

I live in central Denver, so space is a premium and neither of the grocery stores I go to get my Rx's filled have drive-up anything.
Its a pain all the way around from calling the Dr's office once a month, driving over to their office after work to pick-up the physical prescriptions before the office closes (and dealing with the nurse who thinks I take too many), going to the store to drop them off and see if they have enough to fill the scripts (and if not going to another store to try again) to actually picking them up.
While my Dr. is worried about dependency (had to sign a contract that I wouldn't Doctor shop, wouldn't sell my pills, etc.), I'm lucky that in addition to being an internist, he also practices hospice/palliative care and doesn't want me to be in massive amounts of pain.

If you watched the documentary... (none / 0) (#10)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:35:45 PM EST

I think you'd see the promotion of methadone clinics, alternative sentencing, empathy and alternative treatments.


your description was (5.00 / 1) (#11)
by Jeralyn on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:39:26 PM EST

America's recent heroin epidemic created by the over-prescription of opium based pain-killers is a must watch.

I think that's false. It's the restriction of pain meds, not over-prescribing, that causes people to turn to heroin. They can't get the pain pills and use heroin instead.


The last part is right.... (none / 0) (#14)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:46:42 PM EST

... people get hooked from the prescriptions, then when they are cut off, turn to street heroin.


Watch the documentary.... (none / 0) (#15)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:59:30 PM EST

and then get on my case if you continue to disagree. I'll read all your links.


The prescribed use of pain medication ... (none / 0) (#19)
by Donald from Hawaii on Thu May 05, 2016 at 02:33:16 PM EST

... is certainly legitimate in the majority of cases. That said, Jeralyn, our country does in fact have a very serious and growing public health issue regarding opiate addiction among our citizenry and residents.

And while I agree with you that the answer is not to empower law enforcement by criminalizing addiction, with all due respect, I really fail to see how making prescription opiates even more easily and widely available would lead to any marked improvement in the overall situation.

Because from the practical perspectives of personal and public health, one's addiction to prescription opiates is no better than one's addiction to morphine or street heroin, save for perhaps the social stigma associated with the latter. And as far as we know, Prince did not die from a heroin overdose.

With only certain exceptions, by which there exists no other practical and reliable treatment option to resolve the underlying condition causing one's pain, the prescribed use of opiates by physicians for the alleviation of said pain should be for a very specific purpose and strictly monitored for a fixed period of time.

Opiates should not be offered to a patient on demand and in perpetuity, which would constitute a violation of a physician's Hippocratic oath to first do no harm. Addiction should be treated effectively and compassionately, and not enabled.

: you're an excellent writer and all but... (5.00 / 1) (#24)
by linea on Thu May 05, 2016 at 08:24:11 PM EST

not trying to be mean but how about maybe we let real medical doctors in consultation with their patients make these decisions?

Yes, if more people had legal access (none / 0) (#22)
by Militarytracy on Thu May 05, 2016 at 07:43:43 PM EST

To Weed, those numbers would change drastically too IMO.


you could be right (smile) and... (none / 0) (#23)
by linea on Thu May 05, 2016 at 08:11:18 PM EST

i'm absolutely for pot legalization like co/wa but i dont feel pot is a realistic replacment for proper opiod medication for many people. i feel that many people (most people?) would not respond well to the dissasociative feeling that pot induces. just my personal feelings.


I linked above.... (none / 0) (#25)
by magster on Thu May 05, 2016 at 08:50:15 PM EST

... but it might have gotten lost in my defensive rants above, about the promise of cannibidiol, or CBD, which doesn't have THC in it but seems to maybe have a lot of promise in treating chronic pain.


Try me :) (none / 0) (#26)
by Militarytracy on Thu May 05, 2016 at 09:05:14 PM EST

And I'm no expert (none / 0) (#27)
by Militarytracy on Thu May 05, 2016 at 09:08:54 PM EST

On drugs or pain relief yet. I am mercifully quite pain free right now. But are opioids less disassociating than canniboids?


I take hydrocodone (none / 0) (#28)
by Steve13209 on Fri May 06, 2016 at 08:30:57 AM EST

and sometime oxycodone for chronic neck pain (as needed, not continuously) and do not find any "high" from the opiates...just relieve from pain. I self-limit my use, not because of addiction concerns, but because I would hate for it to stop working when I really need it.

That said, I have developed a high pain tolerance, which other might not be able to handle every day.


What I gather from listening (none / 0) (#29)
by Militarytracy on Fri May 06, 2016 at 08:44:44 AM EST

To those who use Cannabis regularly is that the disassociation is something experienced by new users, with regular use it dissipates. So sounds similar to opioids to me. I lost about three days of my teen life when I had my wisdom teeth removed to opioid pain relief, but whenever I had to use them after that I lost less :)

I did have to take opioids for a time, but no longer. And I had to space usage out so that I didn't build tolerance. I had side affects though, loss of concentration and memory. I would have tried Cannabis if it had been legal. And opioids have a history of creating forms of dementia, nothing on Cannabis being responsible for that.


I have no argument (none / 0) (#30)
by CaptHowdy on Fri May 06, 2016 at 08:52:42 AM EST

With anything that's been said about how ridiculous it is to make medication so difficult to get. I have had some experience with this myself.
That said I can also tell you, as a person with a family member (currently and more than one in the past) who is addicted to opioids and that there are doctors who prescribe them when they are not needed.
I have a niece who is a hopeless addict. She has no need for them as far as pain. Everyone knows this. My sister once was in the same place. There was a time when my sister hid her pills from her daughter and they both hid them from my nephew.
My sister had a near death experience and one good consequence was she got off the pain killers. My niece has not been so lucky.
THAT said, I don't think harassing doctors is the answer. My nieces problem should be dealt with by her family. And the family won't do it. That a whole other story.

Just sayin, there are doctors who prescribe this stuff when they know it is not "needed"


OTOH... (none / 0) (#33)
by kdog on Fri May 06, 2016 at 03:49:59 PM EST

my old friend who is still in the depths in heroin addiction only started with the needle when the pills got too expensive and harder to get.

If you're gonna be an opiate addict, you're much better off on the pills than the needle in your arm with god knows what cutting agent. Or at least medical grade morphine via injection.

The more I think about it, public health centers with low cost medical grade drugs and clean needles with counselors on hand ready to help with addiction treatment if wanted is the only way to battle this scourge. Leave patients and doctors alone, close some prisons, lay-off some narcs, reduce junkie crime, and call it a day.


: kdog, everybody that does heroin (none / 0) (#35)
by fishcamp on Sat May 07, 2016 at 08:45:20 AM EST

doesn't shoot it. With the good "China White" powder one can just snort it. With the horrible Mexican tar, that's often cut with shoe polish, one can smoke it off tin foil and it's called "chasing the dragon". Granted there's nothing you can do about the cut no matter which way you do the drug.

... and it's an indictment on the .... (none / 0) (#12)
by magster on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:45:05 PM EST

... pharmaceutical industry and not the doctors who were hoodwinked by the industry on how safe the prescriptions were. With the large increase of deaths and addictions from the over-prescribing of pain meds, I'm disappointed that you don't see that big-Pharma has a huge role in this problem and your lashing out at me for linking a PBS documentary.


: LA Times just today... (none / 0) (#18)
by magster on Thu May 05, 2016 at 11:31:22 AM EST

... has an in depth article on the role of Purdue Pharma in the epidemic of heroin addiction.

The documentary... (none / 0) (#16)
by magster on Thu May 05, 2016 at 12:20:25 AM EST

... highlights how a public defender convinced the Seattle Police Department to forego arrests to get addicts into treatment and try a novel approach to addressing the epidemic of addiction. But I'm the right-wing troll for providing a link to it.


How incredibly sad. (5.00 / 3) (#5)
by Donald from Hawaii on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:27:20 PM EST

Just last night, I watched the documentary "Janis Joplin: Little Girl Blue" on PBS's "American Masters" series, which pulled no punches about Janis's on-again, off-again relationship with heroin, which eventually killed her.

Drug addiction is a scourge. Your socio-economic status is irrelevant if you're caught in its vice-like grip. Being wealthy may afford you and your family better access to treatment options, but if you're not willing to help yourself, well, death is ultimately the great equalizer, isn't it?

Aloha.

unless Andrew Kornfeld (none / 0) (#2)
by ding7777 on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:09:55 PM EST

was limo'ed he would have needed an address to get to Prince's house from the airport.

: the Prince reps (none / 0) (#13)
by Jeralyn on Wed May 04, 2016 at 11:46:15 PM EST

who called the doctor on his behalf and arranged for the visit probably sent someone to pick him up at his hotel and take him to the house. I doubt he they would expect him to take a taxi or book his own transportation. It could have been an independent car service or a Prince agent who picked him up, but either way, I don't see the need for Andrew to have the address.

Your question can only be answered by a dead man (none / 0) (#3)
by CoralGables on Wed May 04, 2016 at 10:16:30 PM EST

Prince died from chronic pain... (none / 0) (#32)
by MileHi Hawkeye on Fri May 06, 2016 at 03:13:32 PM EST

not from pain pills.

: very good article (none / 0) (#34)
by linea on Sat May 07, 2016 at 01:10:07 AM EST

thank you for posting!!

: MileHi, great article. Thanks. (none / 0) (#36)
by fishcamp on Sat May 07, 2016 at 09:49:16 AM EST

I sympathize with you regarding obtaining pain meds since I go through the exact same problems, except for the drive through window, that I do have. I like the drive through because my car has been bashed twice in the crummy little parking lot at my Walgreens. I do like to go inside and discuss questions I have with my pharmacist, since I'm convinced he knows more about new medications than my doctors. Lots of old people in line picking up pain meds so no problems with the condemning stares. I'm an old guy too.
Yes they have made it way too difficult for those in need of pain pills to obtain them. As your article states there was a huge problem with pill mills in the greater Dade/Broward counties of south Florida. Airplane loads of people were flown in and driven from place to place to get literally thousands of pain pills legally. Up to five kids a day were OD'ing. So they finally closed all the pill mills. They also restricted all doctors, throughout the state, to only give 34 pills per person, with no refills. So, as with you, I have to book time to see the doctor every time I need pills. It's a bit easier if you're an old guy, since the doctor can tell with a glance that I'm probably suffering. Bashing around the mountains in ski races has resulted in old injuries appearing as painful. Also my fifteen year old hip replacement is failing and painful.
But I hate the pain pill feeling, so I limit myself to half a pill on gym or fishing days. If I took the recommended one to two pills every four hours I'm not sure what would happen. Florida now has pain management clinics and doctors, as many states do, but they are 75 miles away, up in dreaded Miami. One aspirin very early in the morning, followed by an Ibuprofen later often works. This was recommended by a doctor who also said don't take the ibuprofen first and then an aspirin. Marijuana doesn't seem to work for me regarding this type of pain, but I keep trying it in case things change.

Site violator (none / 0) (#38)
by fishcamp on Thu May 12, 2016 at 01:42:47 PM EST