Jim Carrey Plans To Fight Wrongful Death Suit Over Cathroina White’s Overdose

Jim Carrey has been sued over the death of his former girlfriend Cathroina White, and plans to fight the lawsuit in court.

Jim Carrey Sued

Mark Burton, White’s estranged husband, has filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Carrey over White’s fatal overdose, reported CNN. Burton’s lawsuit alleges that Carrey had illegally obtained and given the drugs to White, who ultimately used them to take her own life. “Ms. White was ill-equipped to ingest and manage highly [addictive] prescription drugs outside the care of a licensed physician,” the lawsuit states.

In response to the filing, Carrey released a statement in which he makes it clear that he plans to fight the lawsuit rather than settle it out of court.

“What a terrible shame,” Carrey wrote in a statement. “It would be easy for me to get in a back room with this man’s lawyer and make this go away, but there are some moments in life when you have to stand up and defend your honor against the evil in this world.”

Carrey’s statement continues, “I will not tolerate this heartless attempt to exploit me or the woman I loved. I really hope that some day soon people will stop trying to profit from this and let her rest in peace.”

White was found dead at her L.A. home on Sept. 28, 2016 with four prescription pill bottles located near her body. “There were four prescriptions: Ambien, Percocet, Propranolol and Zofran,” Assistant Chief Coroner Ed Winter said at the time, adding that they “were not [written] in her name.” According to Winter, three of the drugs were prescribed to one name, while the fourth was to another.

Neither the Los Angeles County Coroner’s Office nor the L.A.P.D. confirmed the origin of the alias on the pill bottles. Carrey’s rep had declined to comment, though a source close to the actor said that he didn’t realize the drugs were missing.

“Jim didn’t even realize until a couple days later,” the insider told Us Weekly. “Because it’s not something that he took on a regular basis.”

Upon learning of her death last fall, Carrey had released a touching statement mourning White’s passing.

“I am shocked and deeply saddened by the passing of my sweet Cathriona,” Carrey told Us Weekly in a statement at the time. “She was a truly kind and delicate Irish flower, too sensitive for this soil, to whom loving and being loved was all that sparkled. My heart goes out to her family and friends and to everyone who loved and cared about her. We have all been hit with a lightning bolt.”