Presley Gerber, the 27-year-old son of Cindy Crawford and Rande Gerber, died Sunday at a Santa Monica rehab facility. He checked in over the weekend and was not sober when he arrived, according to reports. The exact cause of death has not been released, and his family, including sister Kaia Gerber, has asked for privacy.
TMZ sources say Presley had a regular, ongoing problem with ketamine, and that a doctor continued prescribing it to him anyway. Friends close to him are reportedly angry and want that prescribing doctor prosecuted. It’s a detail that turns a tragedy into a larger question about who is supposed to be paying attention.
Ketamine has a complicated double life these days. It’s FDA-approved as an anesthetic, it’s increasingly used to treat depression and addiction, and it’s a well-known party drug. Matthew Perry died of an acute ketamine overdose in 2023, and the conversation about oversight never fully resolved. This story is dragging all of it back into the light.
Where do you land on this? Should doctors face criminal liability when they prescribe a controlled substance to a patient who’s already addicted to it?
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Local Lawton
Local Lawton is a contributor to LocalBeat, covering local news and community stories.