Salvador Plasencia, the doctor who supplied ketamine to Matthew Perry in the weeks before his overdose death in 2023, was sentenced Wednesday to 30 months in federal prison.
Plasencia apologized to Perry’s family before the sentence was read in a Los Angeles federal court, admitting he had violated his oath to care for the actor.
“I failed Mr. Perry. I failed his family,” he said. “I should have protected him.”
Plasencia pleaded guilty in July to four counts of ketamine distribution, though he did not provide the fatal dose. He was handcuffed and taken into custody by federal marshals.
Prosecutors had asked for three years in prison, while the defense asked that he be sentenced to probation. Before issuing her sentence, Judge Sherilyn Peace Garnett rejected a defense argument that Plasencia initially intended to treat Perry’s depression.
“I don’t find that rings true,” she said, saying the doctor had sought “to exploit Mr. Perry’s addiction for your own profit.”
She noted that Plasencia had obtained $55,000 during his brief relationship with Perry, and said that if the case involved any other controlled substance, “we’d be looking at a lot more time.”
Karen Goldstein, Plasencia’s defense lawyer, acknowledged that his decisions were “clouded by money.”
“It really was a perfect storm of bad decision-making,” she said.
Prosecutor Ian Yanniello, meanwhile, pushed back on attempts to minimize Plasencia’s conduct.
“He wasn’t a negligent medical provider,” Yanniello said. “He was a drug dealer in a white coat.”
In text messages, Plasencia had discussed Perry’s request for ketamine, saying “I wonder how much this moron will pay.”
Perry’s mother, Suzanne Morrison, addressed the doctor directly during her victim impact statement.
“This is my boy,” she said. “I know how addicted he was. He survived it all… To be called a ‘moron’ — there’s nothing moronic about that man… This was a bad thing you did.”
Madeline Morrison, Perry’s half-sister, also spoke about the family’s grief, and said that Plasencia had exploited Perry’s greatest fear and biggest weakness.
“Celebrities are not just plastic dolls you can take advantage of,” she said. “They’re people.”
Four other defendants who were also involved in Perry’s death have yet to be sentenced.
