The final coroner's report into the death of actor Cory Monteith has been revealed and confirms that the 31-year-old "Glee" star died from "intravenous heroin combined with the ingestion of alcohol."
The British Columbia Coroners Service released the final report on Wednesday (Oct. 2). In the report it says investigators found a spoon with drug residue on it, a used hypodermic needle and two empty bottles of champagne in the Vancouver hotel room where Monteith was found dead in July.
The report also referenced the actor's rehab stint earlier in the year, which might have lowered his tolerance to drugs.
"It was also confirmed that he had a history of illicit drug use with intermittent periods of rehabilitation and of abstinence from drugs," the report reads. "It is noted that if someone has abstained from using opioids (which include heroin) for a period of time, tolerance may be lessened."
The death was ruled as accidental by coroner Claire Thompson. Monteith was found in his hotel room on July 13. He had checked into the hotel on July 6 and when he failed to check out by July 13, hotel staff entered his room and found him unresponsive on the floor. Hotel video used during the investigation show that Monteith was alone when he entered his room and "was not seen alive again."
In 2011, Monteith talked about his drug use telling Parade magazine that it was a serious problem he struggled with since he was a teenager and he was "lucky to be alive."
By age 13, he said that he was drinking and using marijuana and his drug use was "out of control by the time he was 16.
"Anything and everything, as much as possible," he said. "I had a serious problem."
The actor was honored at the 65th Emmy Awards on Sept. 22 by his "Glee" costar Jane Lynch.
"Cory was a beautiful soul," she said. "He was not perfect, which many of us here tonight can relate to, his death is a tragic reminder of the rapacious, senseless destruction that is brought on by addiction. Tonight we remember Cory for all he was, and mourn the loss of all he could have been."
