Actor Philip Seymour Hoffman died this last Sunday Feb. 2 at his Manhattan apartment. The 46-year old was beloved as a father, and as a performer on Broadway and in Hollywood. Hoffman has appeared in over 50 films spanning a career that lasted 25 years.

Hoffman was found dead in bathroom with a syringe sticking in his arm. Seventy envelopes were discovered with fifty of the envelopes unopened- believed to be heroin. Police suspect that it was an apparent drug overdose that killed Hoffman but the autopsy results are still inconclusive. Hoffman talked openly about his struggles with drug abuse and he checked himself into a rehab in May last year but his drug issues remained.

Services for the actor were held for the actor this past Friday Feb. 7 at the Church of St. Ignatius Loyola on Manhattan’s Upper East Side. Friends and actors with ties to Hoffman attended the funeral to mourn the loss of a talented everyman actor. Among those who were present were Joaquin Phoenix, Amy Adams, Cate Blanchett, Michelle Williams and Meryl Streep.

With the investigation of Philip Seymour Hoffman’s death the police have arrested four people in possible drug charged related to the actor. In New York City itself there has been a spike in recent heroin related deaths in 2010 to 2012- from 3.1 to 5.7 percent per 100,000 people. Many believe that criminalizing and prohibiting drug use further only makes the problem worse. One of those is actor and comedian Russell Brand who claims that there needs to be a stronger understanding of addicts and how society handles that stigma.