Officials release more details about Matthew Perry’s death, but determining cause will take time
Authorities provided new details Monday about the death of “Friends” star Matthew Perry but said it will take time to determine a cause of death.
Perry was found dead Saturday at his Pacific Palisades home. He was 54.
What do we know about his death?
Officials received a medical call from Perry’s home overlooking the Pacific Ocean at around 4 p.m. Saturday reporting that the actor was in a hot tub and not breathing. The identity of the caller has not been revealed.
On Monday, officials said the Los Angeles Fire Department had arrived at 4:07 p.m. and the Los Angeles Police Department at 4:10 p.m.
“An adult male patient was deceased prior to first response arrival,” the LAFD said in a statement. “The patient was found by a bystander who had re-positioned the victim where the head was out of water” in a freestanding hot tub.
“Firefighters pulled the victim out of the jacuzzi and did a quick medical assessment to find he was deceased,” the statement read.
The ‘Friends’ actor, who died Saturday at 54, was a ninja of sarcasm — and his peerless blend of resilience and vulnerability made him a star we could all root for.
Do officials have a sense of what happened?
No cause of death has been determined. The Los Angeles County coroner’s office has launched an investigation, which will likely take months and include toxicology tests.
The medical examiner has completed an autopsy, but a cause of death was “deferred,” officials said.
Law enforcement sources told The Times that no illicit drugs were found at the home.
LAPD Capt. Scot Williams, who leads the Robbery Homicide Division that is investigating Perry’s death, said Sunday that the “cause of death may not be known for some time, but at this point foul play is not suspected.”
Authorities found Perry unresponsive in his Los Angeles home Saturday. There was no sign of foul play.
One law enforcement source, who spoke on condition of anonymity because the investigation was ongoing, said prescription medications recovered at the home will be part of the review, which is common practice.
The sources said that while Perry was found in the hot tub, no determination has been made as to whether he drowned.
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