Coroner: Woman drowned while intoxicated

A Huntington Beach woman found dead in a Corona del Mar homeowner’s pool during the summer died from drowning while intoxicated, according to the county coroner’s report.

Rocio Godoy, 38, had a blood-alcohol level of at least .21 when she died July 6 in the 1800 block of Tahuna Terrace, the coroner’s toxicology report shows.

Her blood contained traces of anti-anxiety medication that, when combined with her chronic alcohol abuse, contributed to her death, according to the autopsy report reviewed Wednesday by the Daily Pilot.

Godoy had been house-sitting for her boss, Jane Buchan, chief executive of Pacific Alternative Asset Management Co., and Buchan’s husband, Jim Driscoll, a Corona del Mar High School track and field coach.

Police said it appeared that Godoy had been staying at the home alone over the weekend and decided to take an evening swim. Construction workers next door saw her body floating the next morning and called police.

Friends and family had not talked to her for a couple of days before her body was found, authorities said.

Godoy would have turned 39 in August.