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LAS VEGAS (AP) — The chief Henderson municipal court judge who was found dead in her home in March had the powerful painkiller fentanyl in her system when she died of a severe arm infection, the coroner in Las Vegas said Monday.
Diana Dawn Hampton's death was ruled an accident, Clark County Coroner John Fudenberg said.
Hampton, 50, died of severe sepsis, or a system-wide infection, due to necrotizing cellulitis of the lower right arm, Fudenberg said. The skin infection is sometimes referred to as flesh-eating disease.
Hampton also had a lung immune system disease called granulomatous, which can increase a person's susceptibility to infections caused by some kinds of bacteria and fungi.
The fentanyl in Hampton's system contributed to her death, the coroner said. He didn't disclose the amount, citing privacy policies. He didn't call it an overdose.
Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid many times more powerful than morphine and heroin. It is typically prescribed as a skin patch for treatment of chronic pain in end-stage cancer patients.
Illegal use of fentanyl has been blamed for spikes in recent years in overdose deaths in places including Ohio and Massachusetts.
Hampton showed no sign that she was ailing three days before her death, said Ozzie Fumo, a veteran Las Vegas-area defense attorney who is running for the state Assembly. Hampton worked as an intern in Fumo's office before she became a lawyer.
"I spoke with her at the bench in court," Fumo said, noting that the two made plans to have lunch the following week. "There was no indication she was intoxicated or in pain. She was spot-on; focused and happy."
Hampton worked for a time as a strip club dancer before going to law school, passing the bar, serving as deputy Henderson city attorney and running for judge.
She became the first elected female Henderson Municipal Court judge in 2005 and was re-elected in 2011 to a six-year term. The court hears misdemeanor criminal and traffic cases.
She had two sons. Her marriage to a city police officer ended in divorce in 2014.
The Henderson City Council has appointed Henderson Township Justice of the Peace Rodney Burr to fill Hampton's unexpired term.
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