Whitney Houston's Cause of Death Not Revealed; Body Released to Family
Autopsy details surrounding the death of one of pop music's biggest superstars remain undisclosed as officials announce the release of Whitney Houston's body to family members.
An initial autopsy was conducted on Houston's body on Sunday, but the Beverly Hills Police Department placed a security hold on the release of any preliminary autopsy results. Police detectives investigating the singer's death asked coroner's officials to keep the details of Houston's autopsy private until their investigation was complete.
The Beverly Hills Police Department has said that further details into the death of the singer might be released on Monday if detectives working on the case feel comfortable enough disclosing more information to the public.
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Few details are known about Houston's cause of death, but some speculate that the award-winning death was drug related, although close friends deny she had been using drugs. The official cause of death can take several weeks to determine and is pending results from toxicology tests.
Police officials also announced on Monday that Houston's body was free to be collected by her family.
"The family is making arrangements. I don't know when the family is going to have her body picked up. But they are making arrangements and sometimes it takes a couple days," Assistant Chief Ed Winter told reporters.
Houston was found dead at her Beverly Hilton hotel room Saturday afternoon, a day before the 54th annual Grammy Awards.
Houston, 48, won six Grammy awards in her lifetime along with winning dozens of other awards and acclaim for her stellar vocal capacity. Some have labeled the late star the "voice of a generation."
For days, celebrities and music moguls from around the world have been expressing their grief over the untimely death of the star, including fellow singer Celine Dion.
"Whitney's been an amazing inspiration for me. I've been singing with her my whole career. I wanted to have a career like hers, sing like her, look beautiful like her," Dion told the morning show "Good Morning America."
"It's just very unfortunate that drugs and I don't know, bad people, or bad influence took over. It took over her dreams," the singer said.
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S HIT "I WILL ALWAYS LOVE YOU" HERE
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S HIT "THE GREATEST LOVE OF ALL" HERE
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S HIT "I'M EVERY WOMAN" HERE
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S HIT "I WANNA DANCE WITH SOMEBODY" HERE
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S HIT "IT'S NOT RIGHT BUT IT'S OK" HERE
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON'S FINAL PERFORMANCE BEFORE DEATH
SEE VIDEO OF WHITNEY HOUSTON & BOBBI KRISTINA BROWN PERFORMING "MY LOVE IS YOUR LOVE"
SEE VIDEO OF LL COOL J'S PRAYER FOR WHITNEY HOUSTON ON GRAMMYS 2012
