 On March 8 , 2011 , former Alice in Chains bassist Mike Starr was found dead at his home in Salt Lake City . Police told Reuters they were called to Starr 's home at 1 : 42 pm and found his body ; Starr was 44 . Reports later surfaced that Starr 's roommate had seen him mixing <unk> and anxiety medication hours before he was found dead . Later reports indicated Starr 's death may have been linked to two different types of <unk> prescribed to him by his doctor . A public memorial was held for Starr at the Seattle Center 's International Fountain on March 20 , 2011 . A private memorial was also held , which Jerry Cantrell and Sean Kinney attended according to Mike Inez . 
