A Melbourne woman who climbed into her unit garbage chute and fell to her death was in a sleepwalker-like state, a coroner has found.
Police determined Phoebe Handsjuk, 24, had committed suicide on December 2, 2010, but her family rejected that finding.
Ms Handsjuk was found dead beneath the chute in the luxury St Kilda Road unit complex where she lived with her partner, Antony Hampel, some 20 years her senior.
Coroner Peter White found Ms Handsjuk was in an alcohol and Stilnox sleeping pill stupor, or a "state similar to that of sleepwalking", when she climbed into the chute and began climbing down.
He determined Ms Handsjuk's "enthusiasm for climbing and penchant for physically challenging activity" had played a part in her descent down the chute.
But he categorically ruled out suicide or murder, saying no one had a motive for killing her.
Mr White said Ms Handsjuk's death was set against a backdrop of depression, talk of suicide, a troubled relationship with Mr Hampel and alcohol abuse.
He said she was either in an unconscious state with a level of motor control or deeply confused and unable to think rationally.
Either way, he determined she climbed into the chute without any awareness of the danger of her behaviour.
"The precise effect that (sleeping pills) and alcohol had upon her cannot be established to a great degree of certainty," Mr White said.
"I am satisfied however that her use of these substances in combination did in fact impact upon her mental state in a significant way and directly led to her entry into the chute."
Handsjuk's grandfather, Lorne Campbell, conducted his own investigation into her death and said it was absurd to suggest she could have climbed into the garbage chute while intoxicated.
"It is my opinion ... that she was killed by one or more people," the retired detective told the Victorian Coroners Court inquest in August.
But Mr White said the nature of her injuries suggested she climbed a significant way down the chute in a "controlled passage".
"The evidence does not suggest that she undertook this conduct either intending to end her own life or as the result of an assault by, or with the aid of, any other person," he said.
Mr White recommended that the dosage of Stilnox to female patients be reduced by 50 per cent.
He also recommended that Stilnox only be available in 5mg tablets in Australia, rather than both 5mg and 10mg forms.
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