(WXIN) – The family of country superstar Naomi Judd has revealed her cause of death.
Daughter and actress Ashley Judd revealed to “Good Morning America” on Thursday that Naomi Judd died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound on April 30.
“I will share with you that she used a weapon,” Ashley Judd told Diane Sawyer in a prerecorded interview. “Mother used a firearm.”
Ashley Judd also confirmed that she was the one who discovered Naomi Judd after the suicide.
Naomi Judd and her other daughter, Wynonna, comprised The Judds, one of the top-selling country duos of the 1980s.
The family said she took her life the day before she was set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.
“My mother, our mother, couldn’t hang on until she was inducted into the Hall of Fame by her peers,” said Ashley Judd on “GMA.” “I mean, that is the level of catastrophe of what was going on inside of her because the barrier between the regard in which they held her couldn’t penetrate into her heart and the lie that the disease told her was so convincing.”
The Judd family was originally cryptic about the 76-year-old’s cause of death, saying it was due to “the disease of mental illness.”
According to Ashley Judd, Naomi Judd sometimes had “trouble getting off the sofa” due to her mental illness, and it was something she suffered from for decades.
The Judds scored 14 No. 1 hits and had performed together as recently as April at the CMT Music Awards, according to the Associated Press.
If you or someone you know is thinking of harming themselves, the National Suicide Prevention Lifeline provides free support at 1-800-273-8255. Starting on July 16, 2022, U.S. residents can also be connected to the Lifeline by dialing 988. For more about risk factors and warning signs, visit the organization’s official website.