Mays sold the world on products like OxyClean and Orange Glo until June 28, when his wife discovered him dead in their Tampa home. Relatives said he never showed signs he used illegal drugs.
The medical examiner's office in Hillsborough County, Fla., where Mays died, released a report Friday indicating that cocaine use contributed to the heart disease that killed the 50-year-old. The toxicology report released earlier showed Mays did not have cocaine in his system when he died.
Cocaine can raise the arterial blood pressure, directly cause thickening of the left wall of the ventricle and accelerate the formation of atherosclerosis in the coronary arteries, the release said.
The toxicology tests also showed therapeutic amounts of painkillers hydrocodone, oxycodone and tramadol, as well as anti-anxiety drugs alprazolam and diazepam. Mays had suffered hip problems and was scheduled for hip-replacement surgery the day after he was found dead.
"It says that cocaine was not detected in his body," said Dean Pazzini, Mays' cousin.
Family members said the medical examiner's report contains "speculative" information and that the opinion issued by one examiner that cocaine was a factor doesn't fit with the toxicology report.
"I don't believe that he had cocaine in his system because the chief forensic declared it through a fact, through an examination, through her report," Pazzini said.
While heart disease was listed as the primary cause of death, the medical examiner listed cocaine as a contributory cause of death. The toxicology test also indicated therapeutic amounts of prescription drugs.
Mays' family said the medical examiner's report "contains speculative conclusions that are frankly unnecessary and tend to obscure the conclusion that Billy suffered from chronic, untreated hypertension."
Mays grew up in McKees Rocks, Allegheny County, and went to Sto-Rox High School. Many of his family members still live in the area, including his brother, Randy.
"If a trace of cocaine was found, it is a surprise to the family," Randy Mays said on Friday at the Onala Club on West Carson Street. "I'd just like to say that's not my brother. At this point, it's just speculation."
Mays' family said they are actively considering an independent review of the autopsy results.
