Support for LAist comes from
We Explain L.A.
Stay Connected

Share This

This is an archival story that predates current editorial management.

This archival content was written, edited, and published prior to LAist's acquisition by its current owner, Southern California Public Radio ("SCPR"). Content, such as language choice and subject matter, in archival articles therefore may not align with SCPR's current editorial standards. To learn more about those standards and why we make this distinction, please click here.

Arts and Entertainment

'Parks And Rec' Exec Producer Died From Heroin Overdose, Coroner Confirms

harris_wittels.jpg
Harris Wittels (Photo via Facebook)
We need to hear from you.
Today during our spring member drive, put a dollar value on the trustworthy reporting you rely on all year long. The local news you read here every day is crafted for you, but right now, we need your help to keep it going. In these uncertain times, your support is even more important. We can't hold those in power accountable and uplift voices from the community without your partnership. Thank you.

A coroner's report confirms that Parks and Recreation executive producer Harris Wittels died from an accidental heroin overdose in February.

E! News obtained the report, which also detailed that "drug paraphernalia, including a spoon, syringe cap and remnants of latex balloons were recovered from the scene."

Up until now, people only speculated that Wittels died from a possible overdose, but this report now confirms it. Friends of Wittels, like Sarah Silverman and Amy Poehler, spoke out about his drug addiction and expressed their sadness over his death.

Wittels—a brilliant and beloved comedian who also had written for Eastbound and Down, The Sarah Silverman Program, and had created the wildly popular Twitter @Humblebrag—was 30 when his assistant found his body in his Los Feliz home. He was pronounced dead at the scene.

Support for LAist comes from

"There are so few people that you meet in life that give you that feeling that you've found a real unique, original person," Parks and Recreation star Aziz Ansari wrote on his blog shortly after Wittels' death. "Harris Wittels was one of those and we lost him yesterday. He was 30 years old. I've been devastated."

Most Read