Anton Yelchin's Cause of Death Officially Ruled Accidental
Anton Yelchin's death has officially been ruled an accident.
The Star Trek actor died of accidental "blunt traumatic asphyxia," Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter of the Los Angeles County coroner's office confirms to WHO.
Yelchin's body was found Sunday pinned between his car and the gate of his home in Studio City, California, after the 27-year-old's vehicle rolled backward down the steep driveway, a Los Angeles Police Department spokesperson tells WHO.
The spokesperson says the car was a 2015 Jeep Grand Cherokee – the same model that Fiat Chrysler Automobiles recalled in April after the vehicle was investigated by the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration for its gearshift design.
"We are looking into that," the LAPD spokesperson says. "The investigation is still ongoing and the traffic detectives will look at all of those factors as they would in any traffic collision investigation. So, at this time we're not sure what caused it, but that's something investigators are looking at."
The 2014 and 2015 models of the Jeep Grand Cherokee, manufactured between July 16, 2012 and Dec. 22, 2015, were recalled by the company after the NHTSA issued a report stating that the vehicles' gearshift design made it difficult to tell what gear the vehicle is in.
The police investigation into the circumstances of Yelchin's death is ongoing, and toxicology tests are expected to be available in 6-8 weeks.
