Gerald Levert's Death Ruled Accidental

Gerald Levert's Death Ruled Accidental

AP

CLEVELAND (Feb. 10) - R&B singer Gerald Levert 's death last fall was an accident caused by a fatal combination of prescription narcotics and over-the-counter drugs, a coroner said.

 

 

Chris Pizzello, AP

The death of Gerald Levert, who scored several hits in the 1980s and 1990s with his powerful voice and sensual songs, has been ruled an accident.

 

 

The drugs in his bloodstream included the narcotic pain relievers Vicodin, Percocet and Darvocet, along with anxiety medication Xanax and two over-the-counter antihistamines, Geauga County Coroner Kevin Chartrand said. The official cause of death was acute intoxication, and the death was ruled accidental.

Levert, 40, son of O'Jays singer Eddie Levert, died Nov. 10 in his suburban Cleveland home. He was a member of the R&B trio LeVert, whose hits included "(Pop, Pop, Pop, Pop) Goes My Mind" and "Casanova." He sold millions of albums and had numerous hits over his career.

His soulful voice powered his appeal and in 1991 he made his solo debut with the album "Private Line." That included a hit duet with his dad, "Baby Hold on to Me."

Andy Gibson, a family spokesman, said Levert was taking the pain medication because of chronic pain from a lingering shoulder problem and surgery in 2005 to repair a severed Achilles tendon. The autopsy revealed that Levert had pneumonia.

Levert also took Xanax for anxiety attacks, Gibson said.