--- description: Drugs did not contribute to Chris Cornell’s death, and his manner of death is listed as suicide, the autopsy report says title: Drugs Did Not Contribute to Chris Cornell's Death, Autopsy Finds image: https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt910be7b55d79f08b/6988d007cf40a81804c47f80/gettyimages-180968345.jpg?branch=production&width=3840&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=16:9 ---  * [U.S.](/section/us/) ## U.S. Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close * [remembrance](/tag/remembrance/) ## remembrance Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close # Drugs Did Not Contribute to Chris Cornell's Death, Autopsy Finds by [Lisa Marie Segarra](/author/lisa-marie-segarra/) ## Lisa Marie Segarra Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 3, 2017 1:16 PM CUT  LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 18: Chris Cornell of Soundgarden performs at Brixton Academy on September 18, 2013 in London, England. (Photo by Rob Ball/WireImage) LONDON, ENGLAND - SEPTEMBER 18: Chris Cornell of Soundgarden performs at Brixton Academy on September 18, 2013 in London, England. (Photo by Rob Ball/WireImage)Rob Ball—Getty/WireImage by [Lisa Marie Segarra](/author/lisa-marie-segarra/) ## Lisa Marie Segarra Update your preferences in [Account Settings](/account/preferences/) Close Jun 3, 2017 1:16 PM CUT Soundgarden frontman [Chris Cornell](http://time.com/4783869/soundgarden-chris-cornell-obituary/ "undefined") did not die as a result of drug use. Cornell’s death was ruled as a [suicide](http://time.com/4784870/soundgarden-and-audioslave-frontman-chris-cornell-died-by-suicide/ "undefined") by hanging in the autopsy report released by Michigan’s Wayne County Medical Examiner on Friday. While Cornell did have drugs in his body, they did not contribute to his death, according to the Associated Press The toxicology report showed that he had barbiturates, caffeine and lorazepam, also known as the anxiety medication Ativan, in his body, the AP reported. The report also listed naloxone, a drug used to stop opioid overdoses, and a decongestant. Cornell was found dead in his hotel room at age 52 on May 18. [His wife Vicky Cornell](http://time.com/4793863/chris-cornell-wife-letter/ "undefined") said that Cornell appeared to be acting differently after his May 17 show. “Many of us who know Chris well noticed that he wasn’t himself during his final hours and that something was very off,” she said in a statement Friday, according to the AP. “We have learned from this report that several substances were found in his system,” she continued. “After so many years of sobriety, this moment of terrible judgment seems to have completely impaired and altered his state of mind.” ```json [{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"NewsArticle","@id":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/","mainEntityOfPage":{"@type":"WebPage","@id":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/"},"headline":"Drugs Did Not Contribute to Chris Cornell's Death, Autopsy Finds","datePublished":"2017-06-03T13:16:51.000Z","dateModified":"2026-04-13T08:57:52.685Z","description":"Cornell's death was ruled as a suicide by hanging","url":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/","keywords":["remembrance","Living","onetime"],"thumbnailUrl":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt910be7b55d79f08b/6988d007cf40a81804c47f80/gettyimages-180968345.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","author":[{"@type":"Person","name":"Lisa Marie Segarra","jobTitle":null,"url":"https://time.com/author/lisa-marie-segarra/"}],"articleSection":"U.S.","image":[{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://static.time.com/v3/assets/bltea6093859af6183b/blt910be7b55d79f08b/6988d007cf40a81804c47f80/gettyimages-180968345.jpg?branch=production&width=1200&quality=75&auto=webp&crop=1200:675&height=675","width":1200,"height":675,"headline":"chris-cornell-suicide-drugs-autopsy","caption":"Soundgarden Perform At Brixton Academy","creditText":"Rob Ball—Getty/WireImage","representativeOfPage":true}],"publisher":{"@type":"Organization","name":"Time","url":"https://time.com/","logo":{"@type":"ImageObject","url":"https://time.com/images/logo.png","width":528,"height":156},"foundingDate":"March 3, 1923","sameAs":["https://www.facebook.com/time","https://www.instagram.com/time/?hl=en","https://twitter.com/time","https://www.pinterest.com/timemagazine"]}},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"BreadcrumbList","itemListElement":[{"@type":"ListItem","position":1,"item":{"@id":"/section/us/","name":"U.S."}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":2,"item":{"@id":"/tag/remembrance/","name":"remembrance"}},{"@type":"ListItem","position":3,"item":{"@id":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/","name":"Drugs Did Not Contribute to Chris Cornell's Death, Autopsy Finds"}}]},{"@context":"https://schema.org","@type":"VideoObject","name":"In Memoriam: Chris Cornell","description":"Rocker Chris Cornell, who gained fame as the lead singer of the bands Soundgarden and later Audioslave, has died at age 52, according to his representative.","thumbnailUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/v2/media/61MnAOLh/poster.jpg?width=720","uploadDate":"2017-05-18T13:25:10.000Z","contentUrl":"https://cdn.jwplayer.com/manifests/61MnAOLh.m3u8","embedUrl":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/","duration":"PT1M17S","potentialAction":{"@type":"SeekToAction","target":"https://time.com/4804123/chris-cornell-death-autopsy/?jw_start={seek_to_second_number}","startOffset-input":"required name=seek_to_second_number"}}] ```