Ed Winter, the Deputy Los Angeles County Coroner who handled the death investigations into some of Hollywood’s biggest celebrities, has died at the age of 73, according to TMZ.
Winter handled several high-profile death cases during his tenure, including Whitney Houston, Paul Walker, Tom Petty, Brittany Murphy, and most notably, Michael Jackson.
He signed Jackson’s death certificate after Jackson’s doctor, Dr. Conrad Murray, who was supposed to sign it, reportedly fled the hospital. He famously said that Jackson had “enough Propofol in him to put down a rhinoceros or an elephant.”
Winter’s first assignment on his first day on the job was the investigation into the 2003 death of actress Lana Clarkson inside the mansion of famed music producer Phil Spector. A jury found Spector guilty of Clarkson’s murder in 2009.
Winter retired from his position as Deputy L.A. County Coroner in 2019 after nearly 17 years on the job.