Bahamas Judge Delays Smith Deliberations

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Anna Nicole Smith,Celebrity Scandals,Larry Birkhead,Deaths,Celebrities
 
 

FIRST PUBLISHED: March 20, 2008 4:14 PM EDT
LAST UPDATED: March 20, 2008 4:23 PM EDT

NASSAU, Bahamas --

A judge on Thursday postponed deliberations of a Bahamas jury charged with deciding what killed the son of former Playboy playmate Anna Nicole Smith.

Magistrate William Campbell said the jury will reconvene March 31.

"The evidence appears to be simple, but it requires more time for review," he said.

The seven-member jury will formally determine what killed Daniel Smith and has the power to recommend criminal charges if it finds evidence of wrongdoing.

The 20-year-old died September 2006 shortly after he arrived in the Bahamas to meet his baby sister, Dannielynn, who was born in a Nassau hospital.

Police have said there is no evidence of homicide, and an autopsy found that Daniel likely died from a combination of drugs, including methadone and antidepressants.

The inquest began in November but was delayed when the court tried to obtain testimony from witnesses in the U.S.

During the final days of testimony this week, Anna Nicole's former boyfriend, Larry Birkhead, said that Daniel was a troubled young man who struggled with drugs and alcohol. But her lawyer-turned-companion, Howard K. Stern, said he was surprised at the autopsy report and said he had never seen Daniel using drugs.

Anna Nicole Smith died from an accidental overdose in Florida in February 2007, several months after her son's death.

Copyright 2009 by Associated Press. All rights reserved.
This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten or redistributed.

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