No foul play seen in death of victim’s ex

No evidence of foul play was found in the exhumed body of slain Nevada state Controller Kathy Augustine’s former husband, the Clark County coroner said Tuesday.

Charles F. Augustine died of natural causes in August 2003 at age 63, Coroner Michael Murphy said in a statement issued after what he characterized as an exhaustive review of tissue samples taken from the body, which was exhumed Oct. 10.

“The cause of Augustine’s death is a stroke,” Murphy said, noting that Augustine also had medical complications, such as heart disease and severe pneumonia.

“This determination is consistent with the original death certificate,” Murphy said.

Gary Telgenhoff, the county medical examiner, found no evidence of succinylcholine, heavy metals, strychnine, cyanide “or common drugs of abuse,” the coroner said.

Charles Augustine’s remains were exhumed from a Las Vegas cemetery as part of a police investigation of Chaz Higgs, a nurse who cared for Augustine. Higgs married Kathy Augustine three weeks after Charles Augustine died.

Kathy Augustine died July 11 at a Reno hospital at age 50, and Higgs was arrested Sept. 29 in Hampton, Va., on a first-degree murder charge.

Authorities have reported finding traces of succinylcholine, a powerful muscle relaxant, in Kathy Augustine’s body and have blamed Higgs for administering the drug.

Higgs, 42, was freed on bail in March while awaiting trial June 18. If convicted, he could face life in prison.