Coroner rules actor's death a suicide

LAS VEGAS - The Clark County coroner's office has ruled that an actor found dead in his Strip resort room committed suicide.

Justin Pierce, 25, of Los Angeles, died of asphyxia due to hanging, Coroner Ron Flud said.

Metro Police said Pierce hanged himself in his hotel room at the Bellagio after an intense argument with a family member. He had been asked to leave the Hard Rock Hotel by security guards after another confrontation earlier in the day, police said.

A Bellagio employee found the body Monday.

Pierce died the day before the New York premiere of his latest film, ''Pigeon Holed.''

Other films Pierce starred in included ''Next Friday'' and the 1995 movie ''Kids.''

Pierce's television credits included two recent appearances on the Fox television show ''Malcolm In the Middle.''

Pierce is the second young actor to take his life in a Las Vegas Strip hotel in a little more than a year.

In March 1999, David Strickland hanged himself at the Oasis Motel. Strickland was a cast member in the TV series ''Suddenly Susan.'' Among his film credits was ''Forces of Nature,'' in which he starred with Sandra Bullock and Ben Affleck.