Cocaine caused singer’s death

Deepa Bharath

Righteous Brother Bobby Hatfield died from a lethal combination of

cocaine use, alcohol and heart problems, an autopsy report released

on Monday showed.

Hatfield, a longtime Newport Beach resident who formed the

Righteous Brothers with Bill Medley in 1962, was found dead on Nov. 5

in his hotel room in Kalamazoo, Mich., about half an hour before a

concert.

Officials initially said he died of a heart attack and passed away

in his sleep, but an autopsy report complete with toxicology results

released by the Kalamazoo County Medical Examiner’s Office revealed

the cause of death as “acute cocaine toxicity.” The report came after

a local television station in Michigan submitted a Freedom of

Information request.

Hatfield did have heart disease, the report shows, with one

coronary artery blocked by 95%.

The findings were “a huge shock” to Hatfield’s family, his

daughter Vallyn said.

“I couldn’t believe it,” she said. “This is the last thing we ever

imagined.”

She and her brothers had several general talks with their dad

about drug abuse, Vallyn said.

“Cocaine is everywhere in Newport Beach,” she said. “And none of

us, me or my brothers, do drugs. None of us can believe what’s

happened.”

Hatfield never made much of his heart condition, Vallyn said.

“He was never the kind to stop and think about all that,” she

said. “He just kept going. That was who he was.”

How her father died would not change his memory in any way, Vallyn

said.

“He was a great man, an awesome musician,” she said, choking up.

“And I’ll always be his little girl and nothing can ever change

that.”

Medley, also a longtime Newport Beach resident, was not available

for comment on Tuesday.

Hatfield and Medley, who made their debut as the Righteous

Brothers at the Rendezvous Ballroom in Balboa Peninsula, had

international hits such as “You’ve Lost that Lovin’ Feeling” and

“Unchained Melody.” The duo, said to have invented the genre of

“blue-eyed soul,” was inducted into the Rock and Roll Hall of Fame in

March 2003.

Will Banse, a fan of the band who went to Hatfield’s well-attended

memorial service at Mariners Church on Nov. 11, said on Tuesday that

he is skeptical about the report’s findings.

“I can’t believe it because he is never known to have been

associated with anything like that,” he said. “It’s been a good group

with a clean image. That’s why they retained their fan base for so

long.”

Banse said he would still cherish Hatfield, the Righteous Brothers

and the music they made.

“I still love them and their music,” he said. “I’d give [Hatfield]

the benefit of doubt.”

* DEEPA BHARATH covers public safety and courts. She may be

reached at (949) 574-4226 or by e-mail at deepa.bharath@latimes.com.