After Ince's death, District Attorney Chester C. Kempley of San Diego conducted an inquiry and issued a public statement which declared that "the death of Thomas H. Ince was caused by heart failure as a result of an attack of acute indigestion." Despite the district attorney's declaration, and the fact that three physicians and a nurse had attended Ince before he died, the rumors persisted. Consequently, "one can still hear solemn stories in Hollywood today that Ince was murdered" in a jealous dispute over Davies.