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| Photo Credit: AP. |
Anne Heche was pronounced dead at the age of 53 after doctors declared the award winning actress brain dead Friday afternoon but remains on life support for potential organ donor. On August 5, the actress crashed her car into a two-storey home in Los Angeles leaving her in coma.
Did Heche suffer burns after fiery crash?
Her car
erupted in flames and so did the building which took 59 firefighters more than
an hour to put off. A woman who was in the building sustained injuries and was
treated in hospital but the house remains uninhabitable after the incident.
Death can be
determined by the loss of all brain function and in accordance with accepted
medical standards, according to ABC News.
Heche suffered
severe burns and was left with "a severe anoxic brain injury" - when
the brain is deprived of oxygen - her family said, according to BBC.
Anne Heche is "legally dead" - Representative
A
representative for the actress said the late actress is “legally dead,” adding
that her life support treatment will continue so as to find possible match for
a potential organ donation.
"Anne
will be deeply missed but she lives on through her beautiful sons, her iconic
body of work, and her passionate advocacy", her family's statement said, according
to the BBC.
"Her
bravery for always standing in her truth, spreading her message of love and
acceptance, will continue to have a lasting impact."
"We
have lost a bright light, a kind and most joyful soul, a loving mother, and a
loyal friend," the statement read, according to TMz.
Heche was
survived by two sons – Homer Laffoon, 20, with her ex-husband Coley Laffoon and
Atlas Tupper, 13, with her ex James Tupper, ABC News reported.
"My brother Atlas and I lost our mom," Homer, 20, said in a statement to PEOPLE.
"After
six days of almost unbelievable emotional swings, I am left with a deep,
wordless sadness. Hopefully, my mom is free from pain and beginning to explore
what I like to imagine as her eternal freedom."
He
continued: "Over those six days, thousands of friends, family, and fans
made their hearts known to me.
"I am
grateful for their love, as I am for the support of my dad, Coley, and my
stepmom, Alexi, who continue to be my rock during this time. Rest in peace,
Mom. I love you."
Heche was driving under the influence (DUI), her blood contains narcotics - investigation
The actress
was under investigation for driving under the influence (DUI).
Detectives
who took Heche’s blood sample with a search warrant found narcotics in her
system, according to LAPD spokesperson Jeff Lee.
Toxicology
tests could take weeks to complete and must be performed to identify the drugs
more clearly and to differentiate them from any other medication she may have
been given for treatment at the hospital, according to ABC News.
Heche's organ donation
Her family
says organ donation has “long been her choice”.
The non-profit
organization OneLegacy is trying to determine if she could be a donor, ABC News
quoted spokeswoman Holly Baird as saying.
Ms. Baird
told The Associated Press the process could take up to several days since it
involves assessing which organs are viable and finding an appropriate
recipient.
Where was Anne Heche born?
Heche was
born in 1969 in Ohio but her father died of HIV/Aids, when she was 13 years
old, according to BBC.
The actress
accused the father in a 2001 memoir Call Me Crazy of repeatedly raping her as a
child.
The BBC reported that in interviews promoting her book, Heche said the abuse caused her to be "insane" for the first 31 years of her life and that she had created a fantasy world called the "Fourth Dimension" to make herself feel safe.
Heche's rise to stardom
In 2004
Heche was nominated for a Tony Award on Broadway in 2004. She was spotted by a
talent agent in a school play after her family moved to Chicago.
She
portrayed twins Vicky Hudson and Marley Love on the soap opera Another World,
according to the BBC. She won a Daytime Emmy Award and two Soap Opera Digest
Awards for those two roles.
Heche became
prominent in the late 1990s playing Maggie in crime drama movie Donnie Brasco
and Johnny Depp.
She appeared
in Six Days, Seven Nights and the drama-thriller Return to Paradise and later portrayed
Marion Crane in Gus Van Sant’s remake of the classic horror film Psycho, BBC
reported.
Did Heche suffer mental illness?
Heche
suffered from mental health problems and also struggled with drug use and was
hospitalized after parking on a highway in California and walking into the desert
at some point.