No Criminal Charges Are Being Filed For Prince's Death

Prince Purple Rain

We might have more information about the mysterious and tragic death of Prince. After a recent investigation suggested there was potentially foul play in the musician's untimely passing, prosecutors have found no one to formally charge. As it is reported today, there was no sufficient evidence of who supplied Prince with the high levels of fentanyl that caused his death. As a result, there will be no criminal charges placed on anyone at this moment.

TMZ claims Prince likely had no idea he was taking the extremely high doses of fentanyl that caused his death. Carver County Attorney Mark Metz added some more information, saying that the musician took counterfeit Vicodin laced with fentanyl. No one knows who exactly supplied the Vicodin.

Prince left this world on April 21st, 2016. "Fentanyl toxicity," a.k.a. an opioid overdose, was labeled as the cause of death during the autopsy, and it was only three weeks ago when the case was reviewed once again. A new toxicity report noted the "exceedingly high" levels of fentanyl in Prince's bloodstream; even for some with high levels of chronic pain, there was quite a lot of fentanyl flowing inside of him. As a report revealed, Prince had a concentration of 67.8 micrograms per liter. For comparison sake, some people have died with just three micrograms of fentanyl inside their blood. People have also died from as high as 58. So Prince had a whole lot of the substance in his blood, and the investigators don't know who gave it to him.

Prince was strictly against drinking and excessive drug use in his life, but the musician was also in severe pain during his final years, often using a cane to walk. It seems Prince might've found an indirect way to receive this medication, and it tragically resulted in his death. Mark Metz also claims Prince might've taken one of the counterfeit Vicodin when he overdosed on a private jet the week before he passed away. At that time, Prince's jet made an emergency landing in Moline, Illinois, where emergency responders gave him a shot of Narcan that ultimately saved him.

Prince was 57 when he passed away in the suburbs of Minneapolis in his Paisley Park residence. The death was labeled accidental at the time, and unless further evidence is presented, that remains the verdict. The musician was also reportedly dealing with an illness just before he died, and the impact of Prince's death is still felt today. There have been several tributes to the late musician, including during Justin Timberlake's Super Bowl halftime show. No matter what caused his death, Prince remains missed by fans all around the world.

Will Ashton

Will is an entertainment writer based in Pittsburgh, PA. His writing can also be found in The Playlist, Cut Print Film, We Got This Covered, The Young Folks, Slate and other outlets. He also co-hosts the weekly film/TV podcast Cinemaholics with Jon Negroni and he likes to think he's a professional Garfield enthusiast.