Michael Hastings was not working on Jill Kelley story, wife says
Journalist Michael Hastings, who died last week in a fiery single-car crash in Hancock Park, was not working on a story about Florida socialite Jill Kelley, his wife said.
Elise Jordan posted a message on Twitter on Tuesday morning: “To correct the record, since I’ve seen it erroneously reported a few times: @mmhastings was not working on a story about Jill Kelley.”
She also thanked people for their “love, support and friendship” after the death of Hastings, who was best known for a 2010 Rolling Stone profile that led to the resignation of Army Gen. Stanley McChrystal.
A person close to Kelley had told The Times that Hastings was scheduled to meet with a representative of Kelley’s this week in Los Angeles to discuss the case.
Kelley alleges that military officials and the FBI leaked her name to the media to discredit her after she reported receiving a stream of emails that were traced to Paula Broadwell, a biographer of former CIA Director David H. Petraeus, according to a lawsuit filed in U.S. District Court in Washington on June 3.
Petraeus resigned from the CIA after publicly admitting that he and Broadwell had had an extramarital affair.
Hastings’ portfolio of stories has spawned numerous conspiracy theories about his death.
The FBI issued a statement last week: “At no time was journalist Michael Hastings ever under investigation by the FBI.”
Officials with the Los Angeles Police Department said there appears to be no foul play in the one-vehicle accident that killed the 33-year-old on June 18.
Officials still are trying to determine if his car had a mechanical problem or if Hastings may have had a medical condition or was somehow impaired. The sources spoke on the condition of anonymity.
Authorities say it may be weeks before toxicology test results are available.
Video of the accident scene showed the car engulfed in flames. Law enforcement sources said the car appeared to be going at a high rate of speed but emphasized that the investigation was ongoing.
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Twitter: @anblanx
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