Tom Petty's Cause Of Death Latest News: What Does 'Deferred' Mean on His Death Certificate?
The official confirmation of Tom Petty's cause of death still remains uncertain, even a week after his death. According to reports, the music icon's death certificate lists the cause as "deferred."
Initial reports, later confirmed by longtime manager Tony Dimitriades, said that Petty suffered a cardiac arrest. There has been some confusion with that until Dimitriades himself, on behalf of Petty's family, confirmed the sad news that the singer has passed away last Monday, Oct. 2, as NME recalls.
Some uncertainty on his cause of death still remains, however. A copy of his death certificate has been obtained by TMZ, and the document still could not officially identify the immediate cause.
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The certificate, which was filed with L.A. County, did add some more details on his passing. The performer died at 8:43 p.m. local time on Oct. 2 at UCLA Santa Monica, that much has been confirmed.
The immediate cause of death, however, just says "deferred."
This could mean several things, but the most likely one is that the issuer of the certificate is still waiting on official word from the autopsy. The Los Angeles County coroner's office did complete that, according to the Associated Press via People.
The department, however, still needs more time to determine the cause of death of the late singer, as office representative Ed Winter said in a statement. Toxicology results on his remains, for one, could take weeks to come up with something conclusive.
No foul play is expected in this case, however. Although, it has been noted that Petty has not consulted with a doctor for the six months preceding his death.
For now, the cause of death is mostly attributed to heart failure, as shared by the singer's manager on Monday. "On behalf of the Tom Petty family we are devastated to announce the untimely death of our father, husband, brother, leader and friend Tom Petty," Dimitriades began.
"He suffered cardiac arrest at his home in Malibu in the early hours of this morning and was taken to UCLA Medical Center but could not be revived. He died peacefully at 8:40 p.m. PT surrounded by family, his bandmates and friends," the statement concluded.