Autopsy: Mary Kennedy had 3 antidepressants in her system
Mary Richardson Kennedy seen outside her Bedford home in this 2005 photo provided by Peter Michaelis. Kennedy, the estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr., had fought drug and alcohol problems. Kennedy, 52, was found dead at her home Wednesday, May 16, 2012. Credit: AP
The estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. had three antidepressants but no alcohol in her system when she hanged herself in May, according to an autopsy report released Friday.
Mary Richardson Kennedy, 52, had trazodone, venlafaxine and desmethylvenlafaxine in her system when she killed herself in a barn at her family's estate in Bedford, according to the Westchester County Medical Examiner's report.
In divorce papers, her husband — son of U.S. Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of President John F. Kennedy — had asked that she be required to remain sober in front of their four children and not threaten suicide in their presence. Her family accused him of using the filings as a "brutal psychological weapon."
Mary Kennedy's internal struggles became public after she and her husband split. She was arrested twice on charges of driving while intoxicated.
"She struggled so hard, for so long, with mental illness, which so many Americans suffer with," said Kerry Kennedy, her sister-in-law and nearly lifelong friend. "She fought with dignity, and in the end, the demons won."
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