Adoctor charged in the drugrelated death of actor Matthew Perry last year was bailed at the hearing in Los Angeles on August 30. Mark Chavez during the hearing agreed to stop practising medicine. He is “incredibly remorseful”, his lawyer said.
Dr Chavez, one of five people charged over Perry’s death, has agreed a plea deal with prosecutors, but did not enter it formally during the hearing, according to a BBC report.
Perry, 54, died at his Los Angeles home last October. A post-mortem examination found a high concentration of the drug ketamine in his blood and determined the “acute effects” of the controlled substance had killed him.
Criminal network
Police announced the results of their investigation two weeks ago. They said they had uncovered a “broad underground criminal network” of drug suppliers who distributed large quantities of ketamine.
Three of those charged – including Perry’s assistant – have already pleaded guilty to drug charges. Dr Chavez has admitted one count of conspiracy to distribute ketamine.
At the court hearing, bail was set at $50,000 (£38,000) with Mr Chavez ordered to surrender his passport and agree not to continue practising medicine.
Ketamine – a powerful anaesthetic – is used as a treatment for depression, anxiety and pain.
People close to Perry, who starred as one of the lead characters on the NBC television show Friends, told a coroner’s investigation after his death that he was undergoing ketamine infusion therapy. But his last session had taken place more than a week before his death.
The medical examiner said the ketamine in Perry’s system could not have been from the infusion therapy because of the drug’s short half-life. The levels of ketamine in his body were as high as the amount given during general anaesthesia, according to the medical examiner.
An indictment filed in a federal court detailed the drug purchasing scheme that led to Perry’s death.
