Gypsy Rose Blanchard doesn’t believe her ex Ken Urker’s death was a suicide.
“Ken recently passed away, official cause of death is pending toxicology results,” Blanchard, 35, wrote in an updated description of her Change.org petition seeking a new law to combat online harassment. “We do know with 100 percent [certainty] that it was not suicide.”
She continued, “Regardless this petition is not about the cause of death itself. It is about the extreme cyberbullying that lead [sic] up to his passing. Cyberbullying played a huge role in damaging Ken‘s mental health and subsequently causing him to use unhealthy coping strategies, such as drugs and alcohol.”
Blanchard shared a screenshot of the updated petition via her Instagram Stories on Thursday, October 22.
“Thank you to everyone for their continued support,” she wrote on Thursday. “I will update the petition as needed, and post any updates as the development of the petition as this goes forward. Thank you for all the prayers.”
Urker was found dead inside his Louisiana home on October 1 — his 34th birthday. A cause of death has not been revealed amid an ongoing investigation, while local police reports indicate the presence of drug paraphernalia on the scene.
Urker is survived by his parents, his siblings and his 21-month-old daughter, Aurora, whom he shared with Blanchard.
“Ken was an amazing father and a man who was deeply loved. He will forever be my soulmate and my red string, a connection that time, distance and even death can never erase,” Blanchard wrote in a social media statement earlier this month. “Above all, Ken loved our daughter, Aurora. She is a beautiful reflection of his enduring spirit, and through her, a part of him will always remain with us.”
She continued, “I will make sure she grows up knowing how deeply her father loved her and who he was beyond what strangers on the internet chose to say about him. He will be deeply missed, forever loved and never forgotten.”
Shortly after Urker’s death, Blanchard vowed via Instagram to “turn pain into purpose” by proposing a new law in his name to combat online harassment and cyberbullying.
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