Journalist Michael Hastings had drugs in system when he died, coroner’s report says

The Los Angeles Coroner's Office says journalist Michael Hastings, who won fame writing the Rolling Stone article that ended General Stanley McChrystal's career, had drugs including amphetamines and marijuana in his system when he was killed in a fiery car crash in June.

However, a toxicology report states the amphetamines, likely meth, were "unlikely to have an intoxicative effect at the time of the accident," and that Hastings likely ingested the marijuana hours earlier.

Hasting's cause of death was massive blunt force trauma, and the coroner determined he likely lost consciousness upon impact and died within seconds.

Hastings died when his Mercedes, traveling at a high rate of speed, crossed into the median on Highland Avenue in Hollywood and struck a tree on June 18. The car burst into flames and Hastings' body was charred to the point that it took several days to positively identify him.

The report states that Hastings had been sober for 14 years, but his family believed he had started using drugs again in the month before his death. An unnamed person at the home where Hastings had been staying told authorities the family was planning an intervention, and that they believed Hastings had used marijuana the night before his death.

The person also said the family believed Hastings had been using a hallucinogen called DMT, though none was found in his system.

At the time of his death, Hastings was working as a contributing editor for Rolling Stone and wrote about politics for Buzzfeed.

He won a 2010 George Polk Award for magazine reporting for the McChrystal article, which was titled "The Runaway General."

His story was considered responsible for ending McChrystal's career after it revealed the military's candid criticisms of the Obama administration.

Hastings was also an author of books about the wars. "The Operators: The Wild and Terrifying Inside Story of America's War in Afghanistan" was published late last year and details shocking exploits of the military overseas.

In 2010, with the publication of "I Lost My Love in Baghdad," Hastings told the story of being a young war correspondent whose girlfriend dies in Iraq.

The Associated Press contributed to this report

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