(L.A.) Michele Linares, 47, Died From Poppers
Case Number: 2023-11678
Los Angeles County is reporting the death of a 47-year-old Hispanic female that occurred in a motel.
The coroner’s office has identified the woman as Michele Linares. Born in L.A. County. Mother’s maiden name is Aguilar.
Manner of Death: Accident
Cause of Death: Effects of Isobutyl Nitrite
RIP MICHELE C LINARES (September 2, 1976 – September 1, 2023)
Formal pronouncement of death was made on Friday at 1:04 p.m.
Ruling by the deputy medical examiner was published on November 29, presumably after the results of tox screening came back positive. This is considered an accidental drug overdose.
Isobutyl nitrite is mainly used in “poppers,” which is consumed as a recreational drug for their psychoactive effects. Poppers are illegal in many countries, and as a result are commonly sold as air fresheners or deodorizers.
Sniffing poppers increases blood flow to the brain and affects chemicals like dopamine and serotonin, producing side effects like euphoria, increased sex drive, and increased sensitivity to touch. It relaxes the muscles in the anus and vagina, which users claim makes penetrative sex more comfortable and pleasurable.
The FDA recommends against use of nitrite poppers for recreational purposes or sexual enhancement.
Because the high from poppers only last a few minutes, idiots will often inhale the substance repeatedly, increasing their risk of overdose, oxygen deprivation, and sudden death.
Healthcare providers are reporting increases in deaths related to intentional ingestion or inhalation of nitrite products for recreational use, including sexual experience enhancement.
Poppers are often packaged in small bottles similar to energy shot beverage products and commonly sold online, in adult novelty stores, and at other locations and are marketed as air fresheners, liquid incense, deodorizers, leather cleaners, cosmetics, solvents or nail polish removers.
The only other time the medical examiner released a public record of a death involving isobutyl nitrate was in 2019. In that case, a 45-year-old morbidly obese white man accidentally overdosed on a combination of ethyl chloride and isobutyl nitrate. Of the 155,000 deaths publicized by the county over 20 years, these are the only two cases of death from poppers.
There was a woman in her mid-40s named Michele Linares of Reseda who was arrested by LAPD West Valley Division on August 1, 2021, for a 273.5(A).
California Penal Code Section 273.5(a) makes it illegal to injure a spouse, cohabitant or fellow parent in an act of domestic violence.
Her bail was set at $50,000.
That Michelle Linares stood 5 feet 2 inches and weighed 180 pounds when she was booked.