ALICE IN CHAINS Members Issue Joint Statement

April 22, 2002

Former ALICE IN CHAINS guitarist Jerry Cantrell, bassist Mike Inez, and drummer Sean Kinney have jointly issued the following statement in regards to the death of vocalist Layne Staley, whose body was discovered in Seattle this past Friday:

On April 19, 2002, our friend Layne Staley was found dead in his home. The official cause of death is still unknown.

Yesterday, we all managed to come together in Seattle. It's good to be with friends and family as we struggle to deal with this immense loss...and try to celebrate this immense life. We are looking for all the usual things: comfort, purpose, answers, something to hold on to, a way to let him go in peace. Mostly, we are feeling heartbroken over the death of our beautiful friend. He was a sweet man with a keen sense of humor and a deep sense of humanity. He was an amazing musician and an inspiration and comfort to so many. He made great music and gifted it to the world. We are proud to have known him, to be his friend, and to create music with him.

Layne struggled greatly for the past decade. We can only hope that he has at last found some peace.

We love you, Layne. Dearly. And we will miss you...endlessly.

Layne's family has asked that the media honor their privacy as they mourn their loss. We ask that you respect their request.

In related news, it now appears that Staley lay dead in his North Seattle apartment for two weeks, his body surrounded by heroin-injection paraphernalia, before a relative discovered him, according to Seattle Post-Intelligencer. Staley's body was reported found Friday, but the presence of drug paraphernalia and the estimated time of death were not initially released. An autopsy was conducted Saturday, but the cause of death will not be confirmed for as long as four weeks while a state lab conducts toxin tests.

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