One of the doctors charged in the ketamine death of Matthew Perry appeared in court today after reaching a settlement with prosecutors.
Dr. Mark Chavez, 54, of San Diego, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors earlier this month, becoming the third person to plead guilty in the wake of the Friends star’s fatal overdose last year.
Before the summons on Friday, his attorney Matthew Binninger told DailyMail.com that he has been cooperating with investigators.
Dr. Mark Chavez ignored a crowd of press demanding answers about the Friend star’s death and addiction
Perry died after taking multiple doses of ketamine
“He’s going to take responsibility for what he did… he feels incredibly remorseful about what happened,” Binninger said.
When asked if his client decided to cooperate immediately because of the high-profile nature of the case, Binninger told DailyMail.com: ‘The evidence is what it is. The fact that it was Matthew Perry doesn’t change the remorse he feels.’
The defense attorney added: “Matthew Perry was larger than life and he was a human being that people cared about. But if it had been a non-celebrity, I can assure you it would have ended exactly the same.”
Chavez closed his medical practice in San Diego two days ago and has also filed for a temporary suspension of his medical license with the Medical Board of California, Binninger said.
The attorney added that his client is in the process of surrendering his medical license, which could happen around the time Chavez pleads guilty.
Chavez appeared nervous and placed his hands on the podium to steady himself as he appeared before U.S. District Judge Jean P. Rosenbluth on Friday.
He wore a light blue shirt, gray pants, black shoes, and glasses. He waived his right to be charged, but signed a waiver of information, which detailed the charges.
Chavez was allowed to remain free on $50,000 bail after agreeing to no longer practice medicine. As part of his bail agreement, he was required to surrender his passport and remain in California unless he was granted permission to travel.
Chavez is also prohibited from selling, using or distributing illegal drugs and marijuana, and must agree to drug testing and be cleared if he gets another job.
He has pleaded guilty to conspiracy to distribute ketamine, but it is unclear what punishment he could face for cooperating with federal authorities.
The maximum sentence for the charge to which he plans to plead guilty is 10 years in prison.
Chavez, 54, of San Diego, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors earlier this month and would be the third person to plead guilty in the wake of the Friends star’s fatal overdose last year.
Dr. Mark Chavez, 54, of San Diego, reached a plea agreement with prosecutors earlier this month, becoming the third person to plead guilty in the wake of the Friends star’s fatal overdose last year.
Chavez and his attorney Matthew C. Binninger outside the federal courthouse on Friday
Also working for the Public Prosecution Service are Perry’s assistant, who admitted to helping him obtain and inject ketamine, and an acquaintance of Perry, who admitted to working as a drug courier and middleman.
The three are helping prosecutors hunt down their main targets: Dr. Salvador Plasencia, who is accused of illegally selling ketamine to Perry in the month before his death, and Jasveen Sangha, a woman authorities say is a dealer who sold the actor the lethal dose of ketamine.
Both have denied guilt and are awaiting trial.