At the time, the Ventura County Sheriff’s Office believed the star’s death was purely accidental.
“We are confident, based on the circumstances, she was not a victim of foul play. There is no indication of this being an abduction or a homicide. There is also nothing to indicate it was a suicide either,” Capt. Eric Buschow previously told E! News.
Ventura County Sheriff, Bill Ayub, added, “We believe it was mid-afternoon when she disappeared, the idea perhaps being that the boat started drifting, it was unanchored, and that she mustered enough energy to get her son back onto the boat, but not enough to save herself.”
Additionally, Ayub explained that Josey helped authorities with his mother’s case. “Her son described being helped into the boat by Rivera, who boosted him on to the deck from behind. He told investigators that he looked back and saw her disappear under the surface of the water,” Ayub said.
Sharing the same sentiments, Buschow told us, “Kids that age, they are going to be very matter of fact in providing information. And he was. He was able to provide information that was very helpful to investigators.”
On Tuesday, July 14, the Ventura County Medical Examiner determined Rivera’s cause of death to be drowning and the manner of her death was an accident.
