DC mayor Marion Barry's son died of accidental PCP overdose, autopsy reveals

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Only son of late D.C. mayor Marion Barry died of an accidental PCP overdose at age 36, autopsy reveals
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Marion Christopher Barry, known as Christopher, died in August at age 36
He overdosed of acute phencyclidine toxicity - commonly known as PCP
Christopher Barry had struggled with drug abuse and was given 18 months of probation in 2011 for PCP possession
His father was famously arrested in 1990 after he was caught smoking crack cocaine in an FBI sting operation

By Associated Press and Zoe Szathmary and Hannah Parry For Dailymail.com

Published: 17:33 EST, 17 November 2016 | Updated: 19:12 EST, 18 November 2016

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The only son of longtime DC mayor Marion Barry died of an accidental drug overdose, an autopsy has concluded.

Marion Christopher Barry, known as Christopher, died in August at age 36.

A spokeswoman for the D.C. Medical Examiner, LaShon Beamon, said Thursday that Christopher died of acute phencyclidine toxicity.

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An autopsy has revealed that the only son of longtime District of Columbia mayor Marion Barry, Marion Christopher Barry (pictured last year) died of an accidental drug overdose

The synthetic drug is commonly known as PCP or angel dust.

Beamon says the death was ruled accidental.

Christopher had struggled with drug abuse and was given 18 months of probation in 2011 for PCP possession, the Washington Post reports.

Citing a police report, the newspaper said Christopher had smoked K2 with PCP after stepping outside a Pomeroy Road SE residence.

His father also had substance abuse problems, and was famously arrested in 1990 after he was caught smoking crack cocaine in an FBI sting operation.

Christopher's father served as mayor of Washington, D.C, from 1979 to 1991 and again, between 1995 and 1999.

He also served on the Council of the District of Columbia for three terms, one as an at-large member and two serving Ward 8.

In 1977, he was famously shot by radical Hanafi Muslims during the siege of the District Building, now the John A. Wilson Building.

Former DC mayor Marion Barry is pictured with his son in this June 2004 file photo

But his years as a civil rights leader and prominent politician were tarnished after he was caught smoking crack in a downtown Washington hotel room with a young woman.

He was busted by FBI agents in 1990, reportedly telling them she 'set me up.'

But that didn't stop him from returning to politics and he went onto serve another term as mayor in the mid-1990s.

He passed away in 2014 at the age of 78.

His father also had substance abuse problems, and was famously arrested in 1990 after he was caught smoking crack cocaine in an FBI sting operation. Mayor Marion Barry is pictured in 1990

Christopher ran unsuccessfully for his late father's Ward 8 D.C. Council seat. He came in sixth place.

He, too, also had a number of clashes with the law.

He was arrested in 2005 on a misdemeanor assault charge for resisting arrest, and faced drug-related charges, including PCP and marijuana possession, in 2011, 2013 and 2014.

Christopher Barry's mother Effi died of leukemia in 2007. She was 63.