Ashley Judd Reveals She Felt Like a ‘Possible Suspect’ in the Aftershock of Naomi Judd’s Suicide
In the moments before country star Naomi Judd’s death, her daughter Ashley Judd held her, barely clinging to life. And Ashley revealed that when officers arrived, they made her feel interrogated like a “possible suspect” by following protocol. Now, she hopes to see privacy laws change for the benefit of other families.
Ashley Judd said Naomi Judd’s death ‘haunts’ her nights
Ashley Judd publicly discussed her mother’s death by suicide, sharing that the day was the “most shattering” of her life. Naomi Judd had been forthright about her experience with depression and mental illness. So, the family agreed sharing the truth of her cause of death with the public was best.
“My beloved mother, Naomi Judd, who had come to believe that her mental illness would only get worse, never better, took her own life that day,” she wrote in a New York Times op-ed.
“The trauma of discovering and then holding her laboring body haunts my nights,” she added. “As my family and I continue to mourn our loss, the rampant and cruel misinformation that has spread about her death and about our relationships with her stalks my days.”
Ashley Judd felt like a ‘possible suspect’ after Naomi Judd’s death
Ashley Judd talked about the officers who arrived to help with her dying mother in her NYT op-ed. She said, “The men who were present left us feeling stripped of any sensitive boundary, interrogated and, in my case, as if I was a possible suspect in my mother’s suicide.”
She also acknowledged they “were simply following terrible, outdated interview procedures and methods of interacting with family members who are in shock or trauma.”
Furthermore, she noted that “the individuals in [her] mother’s bedroom that harrowing day were not bad or wrong.”
“I assume they did as they were taught,” Ashley explained. “It is now well known that law enforcement personnel should be trained in how to respond to and investigate cases involving trauma”
She also expressed “deep compassion” for Kobe Bryant’s widow Vanessa Bryant, adding, that was true for “all families that have had to endure the anguish of a leaked or legal public release of the most intimate, raw details surrounding a death.”
Ashley Judd hopes to help prevent others from feeling like suspects in their loved ones’ deaths by suicide
Ashley Judd felt no control over the outcome for her mother. But she does hope that she can help influence her legacy, and assist others in the future. “Naomi lost a long battle against an unrelenting foe that in the end was too powerful to be defeated. I could not help her,” she explained. “I can, however, do something about how she is remembered.”
“… Now that I know from bitter experience the pain inflicted on families that have had a loved one die by suicide, I intend to make the subsequent invasion of privacy — the deceased person’s privacy and the family’s privacy — a personal as well as a legal cause,” she vowed.
Ashley shared that the “horror” of her mother’s death would be worsened “if the details … are disclosed by the Tennessee law that generally allows police reports, including family interviews, from closed investigations to be made public.”
Unfortunately, details and photos from the scene were eventually made public, despite her plea for privacy. Now, the Judd family is calling for better law enforcement procedures.
How to get help: In the U.S., call the 988 Suicide & Crisis Lifeline by dialing 988 or 1-800-273-8255. Or text HOME to 741-741 to speak with a trained crisis counselor at the free Crisis Text Line.
