COUNTYWIDE : Ayers Dies of Injuries From Suicide Try

A Newport Beach woman who attempted suicide in her Santa Ana jail cell by hanging herself from a shower rod died Thursday night from related injuries, authorities said.

Pamela Pauline Ayers, 45, had been held since Aug. 12 in the women’s jail as a suspect in the fatal shooting of prominent Los Angeles attorney Gerald Goldfarb, a 49-year-old appellate lawyer and columnist for the Whole Life Times.

Deputies conducting a routine check Thursday discovered the woman hanging from a bedsheet tied to a shower rod. Ayers, a former interior decorator, was alone in her cell when the attempted suicide occurred, Orange County Sheriff’s Lt. Bob Rivas said.

Goldfarb died of multiple wounds to the head and body, and Ayers underwent surgery for a self-inflicted wound to the abdomen shortly after the shooting outside her Newport Beach condominium.

Police alleged that Ayers fired 10 shots from a 12-gauge shotgun that she had bought just hours before the slaying. Investigators also allege that Goldfarb and Ayers had argued shortly before the shooting.

Ayers’ attorney has said the woman mistook Goldfarb’s friendship and legal counsel for a love relationship. Ayers’ daughter, Christina Irwin, 27, said the two were romantically involved and were trying to have a child until Ayers suffered a mental breakdown early last year.