Presley Gerber’s death sparks questions about overdose, withdrawal and rehab safety
Presley Gerber, 27, Dies While in California Rehab Facility; Cause Still Uncertain
The 27‑year‑old son of model Cindy Crawford and businessman Rande Gerber has died at a California residential treatment center, a Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office record confirmed Sunday. The facility, located on the 1000 block of Berkeley Street in Los Angeles, had been hosting Presley Gerber for substance‑use treatment when the death occurred.
An emergency 911 call, recorded by a People‑obtained audio, reported that the call‑taker received a call for a cardiac arrest at the rehab facility. Dispatch later noted the incident as a possible overdose. The medical examiner’s office has completed an autopsy, but the official cause of death is “pending further testing.” No death certificate has yet been released.
The family, through a representative to Fox News Digital, issued a brief statement: “The family is asking for privacy during this very difficult and painful time.” The statement also confirmed that the death was not a homicide.
Presley Gerber had spoken publicly about his battles with addiction and mental health. In February, he posted on social media that he had undergone an ibogaine treatment in Mexico, a psychedelic‑based therapy still unapproved by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. While that treatment has drawn interest for its potential to reduce opioid use, its safety and efficacy remain uncertain.
Dr. Nicholas Kardaris, Ph.D., who runs the New York Center for Living in Manhattan and teaches at Stony Brook Medicine’s School of Social Welfare, offered a medical perspective on why a person could die while in treatment. “There are many possible explanations for an acute death in a rehab setting—acute medical or cardiac events, an undiagnosed condition, or a medication‑related complication,” he said. “We don’t know whether Presley had an underlying medical issue. That’s why we’re awaiting the autopsy results.”
Kardaris stressed that being in a rehab program does not guarantee freedom from risk. “People are in rehab because they’re struggling with addiction. It doesn’t mean they’re cured,” he said. He cautioned that withdrawal—especially from benzodiazepines such as Valium or Xanax, or from alcohol—can be life‑threatening if not medically supervised. He noted that opioid withdrawal, while uncomfortable, is rarely fatal by itself; the real danger comes if someone relapses after detox with a lowered tolerance and inadvertently overdoses.
“The period after detox is the most dangerous,” Kardaris added. “A person’s tolerance drops, so the same dosage that was previously tolerated could be lethal.”
The doctor also urged families to vet treatment centers carefully: licensed professionals, sound protocols for withdrawal, medication management, and emergency response should all be verified before enrolling a loved one.
While the precise cause of Presley Gerber’s death remains unknown, the case underscores the complexity of treating addiction, especially when patients have comorbid medical issues or are undergoing experimental therapies. The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office will release a full death certificate when available, which will provide clarity on whether a cardiac event, medication interaction, or another factor ended the life of the young man who had already faced significant public scrutiny over his substance‑use struggles.