Former Dallas County Republican Party Chair Missy Shorey died of intoxication from a mix of alcohol, sleep meds, and a benzodiazepine sometimes used to treat insomnia. It was ruled an accident. The Washington D.C. Office of the Medical Examiner provided the findings today:
The cause of death was diphenhydramine, ethanol, phentermine, temazepam, and zolpidem intoxication; and the manner of death was ruled an accident.
Diphenhydramine and zolpidem are sleep aids that fall under the brand names Benadryl and Ambien. Ethanol is alcohol. Temazepam is the benzodiazepine—in the same class as Xanax and Valium. Phentermine is a diet drug.
Shorey died on April 23 at the age of 47. She was found in a D.C. hotel room. She’d had the difficult task of leading the Dallas County GOP since November 2017, the first woman elected to the post. The party selected former state Rep. Rodney Anderson as a replacement in May.
Shorey was in the nation’s capital to speak to a Conservative think tank, WFAA’s Jason Whitely reported at the time.
