In the upscale St. Louis suburb of Huntleigh, Missouri, a 911 call was placed from the residence of former Anheuser-Busch CEO August Busch IV on the afternoon of December 19, 2010. Paramedics and police who responded to the call discovered the body of Adrienne Nicole Martin, a 27-year-old woman. At the time of her death, Martin had been dating the 46-year-old beer heir for approximately a year.
An initial examination of the scene revealed no immediate signs of illness or trauma.
The investigation into Martin's death proceeded, and an autopsy was conducted. Initially, the cause of death was not clear, and toxicology results were pending. During this time, an attorney for August Busch IV maintained that there was nothing suspicious about the young woman's passing, describing it as a tragic accident. It was later revealed through toxicology reports that Adrienne Martin had lethal levels of both oxycodone and cocaine in her system. The St. Louis County prosecutor ultimately ruled her death an accidental overdose.
Following the determination of the cause of death, no criminal charges were filed against August Busch IV in connection with the incident. However, the matter did move into the civil courts. Adrienne Martin's ex-husband, on behalf of their young son, filed a wrongful death lawsuit against Busch. The lawsuit alleged negligence, though Busch's legal team denied any liability on his part for his girlfriend's death. The civil case was eventually settled out of court for a sum of $1.5 million. The mother of Adrienne Martin also raised questions about the circumstances surrounding her daughter's death, suggesting that there were other individuals present at the mansion on the night she died whose accounts were not fully explored.
