Matthew Perry’s Toxicology Report Answers Big Question About His Death

Pending additional investigation into the Chandler Bing actor’s untimely passing, Matthew Perry’s official cause of death has been listed as “deferred” by the Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office. This classification aligns with the coroner’s office guidelines, which state, “In cases where the cause of death cannot be determined at the time of autopsy, a deferred certificate will be issued until additional studies have been completed” (via CNN).

In addition to looking for traces of fentanyl and methamphetamine (classified as narcotic analgesics and stimulants, respectively), further toxicology testing will investigate whether Perry had other substances in his system, including alcohol, cannabis, cocaine, and prescription drugs like antipsychotics and benzodiazepines. A more definitive cause of death will likely be issued once these toxicology reports are completed.

Other details about Perry’s passing, such as the time of death, have been somewhat easier to deduce. Law enforcement officers told TMZ that Perry’s body wasn’t waterlogged when they discovered him in the jacuzzi, suggesting that he wasn’t in the hot tub for long before he died. This is doubly confirmed by the fact that the actor’s assistant had only briefly left to run an errand before Perry’s death.