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15th Jul 2020

Naya Rivera’s death ruled accidental drowning, says medical examiner

Jade Hayden

She passed away last week.

Naya Rivera’s death has been ruled an accident, according to a medical examiner.

The Glee star drowned last week on Lake Piru in Southern California while boating with her young son.

The four-year-old was discovered alone on the boat last Wednesday before Rivera was reported missing. Her body was recovered earlier this week.

According to Ventura County Medical Examiner, a postmortem determined that neither drugs nor alcohol played a part in Rivera’s death.

No traumatic injuries or diseases were discovered during the postmortem suggesting that the actor died of accidental drowning.

Rivera’s remains were discovered on Monday in Lake Piru following an extensive search by local authorities and members of Rivera’s family.

Following the discovery, thousands took to social media to pay their respects to Rivera’s family and to remember their friend. This included many members of the Glee cast, some of whom travelled to Lake Piru to await confirmation that the 33-year-old has been found.

Rivera was best known for playing Santana on Glee from 2009 to 2015.

She was consistently praised for her powerful performances on screen, as well as her support of the LGBTQ+ community in and outside of Hollywood.

Glee creators Ryan Murphy, Ian Brennan and Brad Falchuk have since committed to setting up a college fund for Rivera’s son, Josey Hollis.

They described Rivera as a “j0y to be around.”

“It was one of the first times an openly lesbian, high school relationship was seen on network television,” they said.

“Naya understood what ‘Brittana’ meant to the many young women who were seeing themselves represented on television for the first time.”

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