The day Prince died, he was scheduled to meet with the son of Dr. Howard Kornfeld, the California specialist in addiction treatment and pain management. But in the weeks before Prince's April 21 death, he met twice with Dr. Michael Todd Schulenberg, who worked at a Minnetonka clinic a few miles from Prince's Paisley Park studio and home, according to search warrant documents released Tuesday. Prince's cause of death is still unknown, as the autopsy results haven't been released. But a law enforcement official has told The Associated Press that investigators are looking into whether he died from an overdose and whether a doctor was prescribing him drugs in the weeks before his death. The official has been briefed on the investigation and spoke to the AP on condition of anonymity because he wasn't authorized to speak to the media.
Investigators interviewed Schulenberg the day Prince died and searched a suburban Minneapolis hospital that employed him. The warrant documents didn't specify what medications were prescribed or whether Prince took them. The warrant details came out the same day investigators returned to Prince's estate and stayed for several hours without saying why. The official who spoke to AP said investigators are seeking to identify every doctor and pharmacy that may have supplied the singer prescription drugs, including online sources, and that the search involves examining computer drives from Prince's home.
It remains unclear why Prince, a world-famous musician worth millions, would seek the help of an experienced but seemingly ordinary local physician instead of first turning to world-class health care. The Star Tribune, citing a source with knowledge of the investigation, previously reported that Prince had been receiving treatment for withdrawal symptoms from a doctor who previously worked with Prince's longtime friend Kirk Johnson. Johnson's attorney, F. Clayton Tyler, didn't immediately respond to a message seeking to confirm that Johnson and Prince shared Schulenberg as a doctor.
Schulenberg, 46, worked for North Memorial Medical Center until at least the day of Prince's death, but he has since left the job. Lesa Bader, a spokeswoman for the health care system, said North Memorial's personnel records were private and she couldn't comment on why Schulenberg no longer works there. According to the Minnesota Board of Medical Practice website, Schulenberg has not been subjected to any disciplinary or corrective action in Minnesota or other states. He's a 1995 graduate of the Oregon Health Sciences University School of Medicine. His license status is listed as active. It expires Oct. 31 of this year.
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