Custody Battle Waged a War Within Heath Ledger

Karen — Mon, 28 Jan 2008 15:04:00 GMT

A lengthy story has surfaced over the weekend, claiming that Heath Ledger's drug use was the result of him being torn up over not seeing his daughter, Matilda Rose. Apparently Michelle Williams was about to sling some serious accusations at the late actor and request sole custody of their 2 year old daughter.

An apparent close friend from Heath's inner circle, Rebecca White, had way too much to say. With friends like her, who needs enemies?

White tells press that Ledger had a drug problem that intensified after the break up with Williams. It became so bad, he began to rely on sleeping pills.

Heath had told friends that Michelle was planning to tell the court that he was a bad influence on Matilda.

White is quoted as saying, "Heath believed Michelle was going for sole custody.

"She wanted nothing to do with him and many of his friends believed that in the last couple of weeks that really pushed him over the edge. He was getting more reckless than ever with cocaine and heroin.

"His use of downers - sleeping pills and anti-anxiety pills and antidepressants- was also getting heavier because he needed them to sleep."

"Heath was a very shy, insecure man. But in celebrity circles you need something to ground you, and for him that was being a father and the idea that Michelle might still take him back and they might still be a family.

"Even though he was seeing other women, there was one side of him that still wanted their relationship to work. But there was also the side that depended on drugs because he felt like a fish out of the water.

"He was not the type to have killed himself. The way I hear it, he went out the night before, he was doing cocaine, he wasn't able to sleep, and the investigators think he woke up, didn't remember taking sleeping pills and then took what accidentally was an overdose."

White went on to say that Williams and Ledger were a mismatch from the start:

"It was this movie-set romance and Michelle got unexpectedly pregnant. It absolutely would not have lasted if she hadn't.

"He was still seeing other women. Heath was an Adonis and she was dowdy and not in his league - careerwise or looks-wise - and no one could understand why they got together. I knew Heath used drugs because the first time I met him, at Puff Daddy's house in Los Angeles, Heath asked Naomi for cocaine. At another party in Paris, Heath took at least six Ecstasy pills, popped them in his mouth all at once and swigged them with a bottle of champagne.

"He was a partygoer and Michelle was quite straight. But when she got pregnant, Michelle was determined to have the baby. Heath wanted to do the right thing and stick by her."

But Williams was horrified by the company Ledger was keeping.

Ms White said: "Michelle kicked Heath out because he would be showing up all hours of the night with this band of hangers-on and doing drugs.

"Michelle started to talk about going for sole custody. She wanted to be responsible 100 per cent.

"She felt he couldn't be responsible for the baby because he wasn't responsible for himself.

"He got deeper and deeper into drugs as his fears of losing Matilda increased."

Don't shoot the messenger. I don't like this story or the fact that this woman came along and blurted all this out, whether it is true or she has sold a story.

I just wish we could let the man, a father to a little girl, rest in peace.

FameCrawler : rebecca white

Custody Battle Waged a War Within Heath Ledger