MINNEAPOLIS — The family of the late rock star Prince is suing a doctor who prescribed pain pills for him, saying the doctor failed to treat him for opiate addiction and therefore bears responsibility for his death two years ago, their attorney announced Friday.
Prince performs at the Billboard Music Awards at the MGM Grand Garden Arena in Las Vegas in this May 19, 2013, file photo.
Prince Rogers Nelson died of an accidental overdose of fentanyl on April 15, 2016. Authorities say Dr. Michael Schulenberg admitted prescribing a different opioid, oxycodone, to Prince in the days before he died, under his bodyguard’s name to protect the musician’s privacy. Schulenberg has disputed that, although he paid $30,000 to settle a federal civil violation alleging that the drug was prescribed illegally.
The lawsuit filed in Hennepin County District Court alleges that Schulenberg and others had “an opportunity and duty during the weeks before Prince’s death to diagnose and treat Prince’s opioid addiction, and to prevent his death. They failed to do so.”
According to the complaint, which was first reported by ABC News.com , Prince’s family seeks unspecified damages in excess of $50,000.
An attorney for Prince’s six surviving siblings said Friday that the new lawsuit will eventually replace a lawsuit they filed in April in Illinois to beat a legal deadline.
A week before he died, Prince lost consciousness on a flight home from playing a concert in Atlanta.
The plane made an emergency stop in Moline, Illinois, where he was revived at Trinity Medical Center with a drug that reverses opioid overdoses.
Send questions/comments to the editors.
-
Maine Crime
Somerset County courts for March 2-6, 2020
-
Varsity Maine
Local roundup: Gardiner girls basketball rolls to win over Morse
-
Arts & Entertainment
Lady Gaga’s dogs turn up safe after theft and shooting
-
Boston Bruins
Strome, Kreider lead Rangers to 6-2 win over Bruins
-
Nation & World
Canadian regulator authorizes AstraZeneca vaccine
Success. Please wait for the page to reload. If the page does not reload within 5 seconds, please refresh the page.
Enter your email and password to access comments.
Hi {SUB NAME}, to comment on stories you must . This profile is in addition to your subscription and website login.
Already have one? .
Invalid username/password.
Please check your email to confirm and complete your registration.
Only subscribers are eligible to post comments. Please subscribe or login to participate in the conversation. Here’s why.
Use the form below to reset your password. When you've submitted your account email, we will send an email with a reset code.