The second man to have been found dead at the West Hollywood home of a prominent Democratic Party contributor was identified Thursday by the Los Angeles County medical examiner as 55-year-old Timothy Dean.
Dean was found at 1:05 a.m. (4:05 a.m. ET) Monday in the apartment of Ed Buck, a longtime financial backer of Democrats' campaigns, after someone called 911, said Los Angeles County Sheriff's Deputy Charles Moore. The cause of death is under investigation.
Buck's attorney, Seymour Amster, said his client believes Dean was "intoxicated" from drugs when he arrived at the apartment late Sunday or early Monday.
Buck, through his lawyer, has maintained his innocence.
If drugs were involved in Dean's demise, it would be the second time they played a role in a man's dying at Buck's residence. On July 27, 2017 Gemmel Moore, who would have been 29 next week, was reported dead at the apartment.
Methamphetamine was listed as an "immediate cause" for Moore's death, according to a coroner's report.
At the time, Moore's mother, LaTisha Nixon, told authorities she believed Buck "may have harmed the decedent," the coroner's report said.
Sheriff's homicide investigators opened an investigation into Moore's death, but prosecutors said they saw nothing in the resulting file that warranted charges.
Sheriff's homicide detectives said this week they are reviewing the Moore case in light of Dean's death. The probe into the 55-year-old's demise, however, is a death investigation and not a criminal inquiry, sheriff's officials said.
On Tuesday U.S. Rep. Ted Lieu, D-California, said he was giving $18,500 in contributions from Buck to LGBTQ and African-American organizations.
