Rick “Zombie Boy” Genest — who is was a beloved model, and stared in a Lady Gaga music video — passed away more than a year ago, but the recent announcement regarding his official cause of death has sparked a backlash on social media. Genest died in August 2018, after allegedly taking his own life by jumping from a third-story building balcony. However, now, a Canadian coronoer has ruled Genest’s death an accident, saying that she does not have complete cause to believe he intended to take his own life. “It was an accidental death,” Coroner Mélissa Gagnon wrote, then adding that she did not find a “clear and unequivocal intention to end his life.”
While there had initially been reports he died by suicide, the coroner found that Rick Genest, #ZombieBoy, was happy at the time of his death, “highly motivated” by his art projects and the investigation didn’t find a “clear and unequivocal intention to end his life.”
— Sean Previl (@SeanPrevil) October 28, 2019
The report also indicated that Genest did have marijuana and alcohol in his system. “Some close friends reported that he heard voices, particularly when he used substances,” Gagnon stated in the report. “However, Mr. Genest did not seem to be in a state of psychosis or delirium when he went out on the balcony.”
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“Considering that habit and his very advanced state of inebriation, it is plausible that Mr. Genest accidentally fell from the balcony,” she also stated, reportedly adding that she understood he had a “happy” life. This has been a very controversial conclusion among social media users, many of whom are sharing their thoughts on Twitter.
Didn’t think it was suicide at the time and am not convinced it was an ‘accident’, neither. I’ll just leave it at that. 🤐
— Dizzy ★ (@TinDizzy) October 28, 2019
“Kinda careless for them to base their findings on the fact that he was ‘happy’ or had art projects lined up. Chester Bennington is a perfect example of this. May he Rest In Peace either way,” one person tweeted.
“Many suicide victims appear happy between the days they have made the decision to end their life and when they actually do it.That is why you so often hear:We had no idea, he was so happy,full of vigor and plans,” someone else offered. “Chances are he died of an accidental fall as much as of suicide.”
Genest was 32 years old at the time of his death.
Photo Credit: Getty Images
