News May 17, 2012

Coroner Confirms RFK Jr.'s Wife Died of Hanging

Mary Richardson Kennedy, the estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. who had fought drug and alcohol problems, was found dead in her home Wednesday, May 16, 2012. She was 52. (AP Photo/Peter T. Michaelis)

Madeleine Morgenstern

A New York medical examiner said Thursday Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s estranged wife died of asphyxiation due to hanging, the Associated Press reported.

Mary Richardson Kennedy was found dead Wednesday on the family's property in Bedford, N.Y. She was 52.

An autopsy performed Thursday morning confirmed the cause of death.

ABC News reported a housekeeper discovered Kennedy's body hanging in a garage.

Mary Kennedy had struggled with drugs and alcohol; she had two high-profile arrests after her husband, the son of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of President John F. Kennedy, filed for divorce in 2010.

The couple had four children together.