[Sportschosun, Reporter Park A-ram] Actress Davi Chase, who rose to fame as a child star, has died at the age of 35. News that she had been struggling with a difficult life before her death has added to the sadness.
According to TMZ, Daily Mail and other U.S. media outlets on the 18th local time, Davi Chase died on the 16th at a hospital in Los Angeles. The cause of death was reported as meningitis and a blood infection.
In particular, Davi Chase is said to have disappeared from the public eye for years before her death as she faced financial and personal hardships. Reports said she had been living with her boyfriend in an RV parked in the Boyle Heights area of downtown Los Angeles, near Skid Row, a neighborhood known for its large homeless population.
People close to her reportedly searched for her whereabouts for years but could not find her easily. They also worried about her health and said she was believed to have once dropped to about 34 kg, or 75 pounds.
In a recent interview, Davi Chase's mother, Kathy Chase, said her daughter had suffered from drug addiction for a long time. She claimed that after a motorcycle accident in 2016 injured her back, the painkillers she was prescribed led to drug dependence.
Kathy Chase said, "My daughter started looking for drugs and began spending time with bad people," adding, "I never once kicked my daughter out." She continued, "I tried to help her, but I could not force her into treatment if she did not want it."
She also said she had lost contact with her daughter after 2019 and had tried to pick her up after her release from prison, but they missed each other and never met again.
Meanwhile, Davi Chase gained worldwide popularity for playing Samara Morgan in The Ring, and she was widely loved for voicing Lilo in the Walt Disney animated film Lilo & Stitch.
tokkig@sportschosun.com
