Ashley Judd Speaks Out After a Piece of Her Mom’s Suicide Note Was Leaked

On January 20, The New York Post shared an image that was allegedly obtained by the Williamson County Sheriff’s Office. The image was allegedly a picture of a sticky note written by Naomi Judd before her passing.

The yellow sticky note read, “Do not let Wy come to my funeral. She’s mentally ill,” with the word “not” underlined. “Wy” is seemingly referring to her oldest daughter and duet partner Wynonna Judd.

Ashley Judd Speaks Out After a Piece of Her Mom’s Suicide Note Was Leaked

As Mamas Uncut previously reported, Naomi took her own life in April 2022, just hours before she and Wynonna were set to be inducted into the Country Music Hall of Fame.

Now, Wynonna’s younger sister, Ashley Judd, is speaking out in defense of her mom and her sister, addressing the note that she never wanted to be made public in the first place.

In a statement shared by Ashley Judd on her Instagram, she wrote, “Our family is deeply distressed by the galling, irresponsible publication of and ongoing requests for details and images of our beloved mother and wife’s death by suicide because of the trauma and damage it does to those who view such materials and the contagion risk they pose to those who are vulnerable to self-harm.” 

Judd continued by calling out the publications who posted the note, saying, “this so-called ‘journalism’ is merely the crudest monetization of a family’s suffering and despair, and a flagrant, cynical disregard for public welfare.” 

“It is equally a deep violation of our right to a modicum of decency and privacy in death. We remonstrate media to take as fact the American Foundation for Suicide Prevention’s guidelines on coverage of suicide both for public safety and to avoid re-traumatization of survivors of such a devastating tragedy.”

Judd then addressed the note in question directly, saying that the note “came from the complex disease of mental illness and not from her mother’s heart. We hope the public and elected officials now see, with us, the keen importance of strengthening and changing state privacy laws so that police reports in the event of death by suicide are not, in fact, public record. The consequence of the law as it is presently serves only the craven gossip economy and has no public value or good.”

In addition to her statement, Judd also shared the details of a bill that has been adopted by Tennessee Senate Majority Leader Jack Johnson that is referred to as Tennessee Senate Bill 9. The goal of the Bill is to “limit access to death records, investigative reports, and 911 calls if no crime was involved in the death of an individual.”

As Judd writes, “If passed, this bill will give Tennessee families the privacy they deserve without having to fight for it. Senate Bill 9 gives families the privacy that is critical for them to grieve appropriately, and it can be obtained without compromising the importance of government transparency.”

“We deeply value freedom of information and here make a crucial distinction: there is absolutely no compelling public interest in making any family’s devastation a public spectacle or in revealing the confidential mental health details and specific sufferings of the person who died by suicide. But it is not just the family who suffers from exposure to this kind of material; it also poses a threat to society, for it can act as a contagion amongst a population vulnerable to self-harm. We will continue to advocate for the protection of others who will face this situation, as we know we are not alone.”

RELATED: Ashley Judd Shares What Haunts Her the Most After Finding Her Mom the Day She Passed Away

Heartbreaking.

If you or someone you know is dealing with depression or thoughts of suicide, please call the help lifeline at 988. More information can be found on the lifeline’s website here.