Assassinations, Plane Crashes & Overdoses: Inside The Kennedy Family Curse

The lateRobert F. Kennedy’s granddaughter Saoirse Kennedy Hill died at age 22 of an overdose on Thursday, August 1.

According to the New York Times, emergency responders were called to the family’s Hyannis Port, Massachusetts compound at approximately 3 p.m. The daughter of Courtney Kennedy and Paul Hill was found “unresponsive.” She was transferred to Cape Cod Hospital in Hyannis, where she was pronounced dead.

An autopsy completed on Friday revealed “no trauma inconsistent with lifesaving measures,” according to the Medical Examiner’s Office. RadarOnline.com later reported a toxicology report is underway to determine the exact cause of death.

In the wake of her passing, the family released a statement confirming their tragic loss.

“Our hearts are shattered by the loss of our beloved Saoirse,” it read. “Her life was filled with hope, promise and love.”

The following day, her uncle Robert F. Kennedy Jr. penned a heartbreaking tribute to his dearest niece.

“We’ve lost our daughter and our children, their sister,” he wrote in an Instagram post. “Saoirse was fierce, both in her love for her family and yearning for justice. A fearless adventurer, she inspired curiosity and daring in her friends.”

He continued, “But her greatest gift was to find humor in everything and to give us all the gift of her laughter – and our own. The gaping hole that she leaves in our family is a wound too large to ever heal.”

Kennedy Hill, who was a student at Boston University, struggled with mental illness and depression. Prior to college, she detailed her experiences in an essay for The Deerfield Scroll admitting to attempted suicide and feeling “deep bouts of sadness that felt like a heavy boulder on my chest.”

A funeral service will be held for her at a church close to the Cape Cod compound on Monday, August 5.

Kennedy Hill’s death is the latest casualty in the Kennedy family curse. Scroll through Radar’s gallery to go inside the most shocking Kennedy tragedies.

JFK’s sister Kathleen Kennedy died en route to France to visit her father in Cannes. She had allegedly been having an affair that resulted in her mother ostracizing her and sought her father’s help to bring things back on track. When the pilot insisted that the turbulent weather conditions had made it unsafe to take off, her lover insisted they leave on time. The plane crashed during a storm, killing Kathleen, her boyfriend, the pilot and a navigator.

Robert F. Kennedy’s son David lived a troubled life, especially following his father’s assassination. As a pre-teen, he nearly drowned in the Pacific Ocean, but it was his heroin and alcohol addiction that would eventually take his life. In 1979, he was hospitalized in Norfolk, Mass., for treatment of a rare infection of the lining of the heart known as bacterial endocarditis, which is sometimes associated with narcotics abuse. Amid a weekend with the Kennedy family in Florida, he was found dead of a cocaine overdose in his hotel room.

Michael Kennedy, the son of the late Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and Ethel, was 39 when he died in a skiing accident in Aspen on New Year’s Eve 1997. Pitkin County Sheriff’s authorities said he crashed into a tree and was not receptive to intensive care.

Senator Edward Kennedy was the heir of the Kennedy family once his older brothers John and Robert were assassinated. His 40-year career in the Senate, in many ways, was inspired by JFK’s decision to run for President. With his brother’s ascension, he ran and took over his brothers’ role. But a 1969 scandal haunted his political career. Ted left a party with Mary Jo Kopechne. He drove his car off a bridge and into a pond. Although he was able to escape from the vehicle, he claimed he was unable to rescue her and left the scene. He pled guilty to a charge of leaving the scene of an accident. Ted was diagnosed with a malignant brain tumor in May 2008 and had a successful surgery. He was honored by President Barack Obama with the Presidential Medal of Freedom before he succumbed to his battle with brain cancer in August 2009. He was 77 years old.

John F. Kennedy Jr., his wife Carolyn Bessette and his sister-in law Lauren Bessette were on the way to his cousin Rory’s wedding in a small aircraft piloted by JFK and Jackie O’s son in July 1999. JFK Jr. denied the assistance of a flight instructor and proceeded to fly despite his lack of training. He crashed into the Atlantic Ocean off Martha’s Vineyard. Five days later, an underwater camera located the wreckage and found the bodies of John, Carolyn and Lauren still strapped to their seats.

In 2011, Kara Kennedy, the eldest of Ted Kennedy’s children, died of a heart attack while working out at a health club in the DC area. She had previously battled lung cancer and underwent surgery to remove a malignant tumor.

Mary Richardson Kennedy, the estranged wife of Robert F. Kennedy Jr. and the mother of his four children, was on the brink of divorce with the senator when she passed away in May 2012. Following a history of alcohol and drug abuse, including two DUI arrests, the Westchester County Medical Examiner’s Office determined the cause of death was asphyxiation due to hanging and authorities allegedly ruled her death a suicide.

When 15-year-old Martha Moxley’s body was found in front of her Greenwich, Connecticut home, pieces of a golf club that was allegedly used to beat her to death were also discovered. The club was traced back to Kennedy cousin Michael Skakel’s home, which was located across the street. Michael's older brother Thomas was spotted with Moxley the night she died and was initially the main suspect in the case. The jury later found Michael, who was 15 at the time, guilty of the 1975 murder in 2002. He was sentenced to 20 years before he was granted a new trial and it was determined there was enough evidence to charge him with murder.The conviction was vacated.