Wife of RFK Jr. found dead at home in N.Y.

BEDFORD, N.Y. - Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s estranged wife, Mary Richardson Kennedy, who had fought drug and alcohol problems, was found dead in her home Wednesday.

Attorney Kerry Lawrence, who had represented her in a drunken-driving case, said he didn't know the cause of her death at age 52. An autopsy was set for Thursday.

Police confirmed a body was found on Robert F. Kennedy Jr.'s property in Bedford, north of New York.

The former Mary Richardson married Robert Kennedy Jr., a prominent environmental lawyer and the son of Sen. Robert F. Kennedy and nephew of President John F. Kennedy, in 1994. The couple had four children, the youngest born in July 2001.

Her family cited her devotion to her children in remembering her.

"We deeply regret the death of our beloved sister Mary, whose radiant and creative spirit will be sorely missed by those who loved her," the family said in a statement issued by Lawrence. "Our heart goes out to her children who she loved without reservation."

Kennedy had had trouble with drugs and alcohol and had two high-profile arrests around the time her husband filed for divorce in 2010.

She was charged later that year with driving under the influence of drugs, not long after she pleaded guilty to drunken driving when police reported seeing her car hit a curb outside a school.