Investigation begins into death of Linda McCartney
7.02 p.m. ET (2302 GMT) April 22, 1998
By Michael Fleeman, Associated Press
LOS ANGELES (AP) - Santa Barbara County officials said Wednesday no death certificate has been filed for Linda McCartney and a family spokesman hinted that she may have died elsewhere.
Geoff Baker said the family allowed everyone to assume the American-born wife of Paul McCartney died in Santa Barbara "in an effort to allow the family time to get back to England in peace.''
Reports have surfaced that she died outside the city in an unincorporated part of the county.
"When Linda died last Friday with her family around her it was in a place that was private to her and her family,'' Baker said.
Mrs. McCartney's family released a statement Sunday saying that she died of
breast cancer at age 56 while on a vacation in Santa Barbara.
Sheriff's officials refused to give further details of their investigation into why no death certificate has been filed.
"This is an ongoing active investigation and until we get some of our questions answered, we're not going to be able to comment any further,'' said sheriff's spokesman Sgt. Jim Peterson.
Asked if the investigation covered the circumstances of her death or the paperwork procedures following it, Peterson said: "It's the whole thing.''
Coroner and health department officials said they don't have the paperwork that must be filed after a person dies in the county. Authorities say it's unusual that they haven't received paper work for Mrs. McCartney by now.
This paperwork includes a death certificate and a form for the dispensation of human remains.
"The mortuary hasn't filed anything yet. We have no information whatsoever. Nobody has contacted us so I don't know what happened,'' said Elaine Scharf, who works in the records section of the Santa Barbara County Health Department.
Sgt. Tom Nelson, who runs the Coroner's Bureau of the Sheriff's Department, told the Santa Barbara News-Press the coroner has no death certificate and didn't issue the necessary permit for Mrs. McCartney to be cremated. Media reports in England have said she was cremated and her remains scattered there.
"What is supposed to take place did not take place,'' Nelson told the News-Press.
Contacted by The Associated Press, Nelson refused to comment and referred calls to Peterson.
Baker denied rumors that Mrs. McCartney's death was an asssisted-suicide.
"This is not true,'' Baker said.
"Linda's doctor was Larry Norton of the Sloane Kettering Memorial Hospital in New York. If need be, Dr. Norton will confirm that Linda died naturally.''
Efforts by the AP to contact Norton Wednesday evening were not immediately successful.
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