This article was originally published on Crafting Your Home. A human contributor also wrote and edited the post.
The post Presley Gerber Dies at 27 as Police Probe Suspected Overdose and Dispatch Calls Point to Cardiac Arrest first appeared on Crafting Your Home
Presley Gerber, the only son of supermodel Cindy Crawford and businessman Rande Gerber, has died at 27, and the first firm details about his final morning are now emerging.
The Los Angeles County Medical Examiner’s Office says he died Sunday at a rehab facility, and Allie Jenkins, a representative for Crawford and Rande Gerber, confirmed the death.
Santa Monica police say detectives are investigating it as a suspected overdose, though the department has said nothing so far points to foul play. What actually caused his death has not been officially determined, and that distinction matters for everything that follows.
The news moved in stages over roughly a day. TMZ was first to report the death, and the medical examiner’s online listing gave a location but no cause. Police statements, dispatch details and an autopsy update then arrived in quick succession.
Some early reports said an autopsy had not yet been completed, and those have since been overtaken by newer information. Because the picture has shifted more than once, the sections below stick to what officials and named outlets have confirmed, and they say plainly what is still unknown.
What Police, Dispatch Records and the Medical Examiner Have Confirmed
In a statement to E! News, Santa Monica police said officers responded at about 9:35 a.m. on September 20 to a report of a possible overdose and found an adult male who was deceased, whom the medical examiner’s office identified as Gerber.
The department said its detectives are treating the case as a suspected overdose and added that there is “no indication of foul play.” Police also said the official cause and manner of death will be decided by the Los Angeles County Department of Medical Examiner. The word “suspected” therefore reflects where the investigation stands today, and it is not a final ruling.
People reported that a call was made to Santa Monica police at 9:35 a.m. on September 20 for a cardiac arrest, while another dispatch indicated first responders were responding to an overdose at the address.
Those two descriptions come from emergency communications, which capture what was reported in the moment, and neither one is a medical conclusion.
The medical examiner’s office has the authority to say what happened, and police have said the investigation is ongoing. No outlet that reviewed this story has said the address in the dispatch records is the rehab facility named in the medical examiner’s listing, so this article does not link the two.
On the autopsy, People confirmed that one has been completed, with final results still pending, and Just Jared, citing People, reported that the cause of death has been listed as “deferred”.
In the medical examiner’s own explanation of that term in an earlier high-profile case, a spokesperson said it means a cause has not been determined after an autopsy and the office is requesting more investigation, including additional studies.
Grazia noted that toxicology testing alone can take weeks, sometimes longer, so a final answer may not come quickly. Until the office updates its record, no one outside the investigation can say with certainty what happened.
The reports also describe where he died only in general terms. Public records list a rehab facility, and the facility’s name had not been made public in the reports available at the time of writing.
The family responded through a spokesperson, who told TMZ, “The family is asking for privacy during this very difficult and painful time.”
The statement was issued on behalf of Crawford, Rande Gerber and their daughter, Kaia Gerber. In the reports available at the time of writing, the family had not offered further comment on the circumstances.
A Model Who Chose to Be Open About the Hardest Parts of His Life
Born in California in 1999, Gerber was one of two children Crawford shares with Rande Gerber, who were married in 1998. He followed his mother into modeling early.
ABC7 reported he was signed by IMG Models at 15, and he made his runway debut for Moschino at 16. He later walked for labels including Burberry, Dolce & Gabbana, Bottega Veneta, Tommy Hilfiger and Ralph Lauren, and he appeared in a Calvin Klein campaign.
Photographer Collier Schorr, who shot both Presley and Kaia, wrote on Instagram that her last shoot with him was a Hugo Boss campaign and that she sensed him struggling to be present under the scrutiny. She added that “He wanted to find his place.”
His path was not free of public difficulty. In January 2019, he was arrested for driving under the influence after being stopped in a Tesla in Beverly Hills around 4 a.m.
TMZ reported he was later sentenced to three years of probation and ordered to complete a DUI program and two days of community service.
In the years after, he spoke candidly about mental health and substance abuse and about treatment, and in 2024 he posted a video series called “Mental Health Mondays”. That openness means much of his treatment history is on the public record.
People reported that in an Instagram video last December, Gerber said he had been on several depressant medications, including Buprenorphine, Xanax, and Valium, to treat panic attacks. He also spoke about a run of losses in his life.
Then, in a March 26 Instagram post, he said he was undergoing an ibogaine flood dose, and Just Jared reported the treatment took place in Cancun, Mexico.
People, citing Stanford Medicine, described ibogaine as a psychedelic from the root bark of a West African shrub that is not currently legal in the U.S. but has been used in Canada and Mexico to help treat addiction.
In the post he wrote, “Praying it’s the last time I have to come back.” None of the coverage available so far connects those earlier treatments or medications to the events of September 20, and officials have said the cause of death is still to be determined.
Family, Friends and Colleagues Remember Him
Both his mother and his sister responded publicly to that March post. Crawford commented, “You are a warrior!” and told him she was proud, while Kaia wrote that she was proud of her brother. In an August interview with Vogue, Kaia spoke about her brother’s public battle with addiction.
“When something like that happens in a family, it kind of levels everyone,” she said. She also told the magazine that their parents had spent most of their lives being very private, that her brother had pushed the family to be open, and that trying to keep a lid on such struggles can leave a person feeling ashamed.
Tributes from friends and colleagues kept arriving on social media. Jason Kennedy wrote on Instagram that Gerber had “a huge heart,” that he was open about his struggles because he knew it would help others, and that Kennedy felt a close bond with him. Kennedy also said he was heartbroken for Gerber’s parents and family.
Brooklyn Peltz Beckham wrote on his Instagram Story that he was heartbroken, called Gerber kind, and said he would be deeply missed. Paris Hilton posted that she was completely heartbroken and described him as sweet, sensitive, and genuine, saying she cared for him very much.
Gerber’s death leaves his parents and his sister at the center of a loss that is being processed in public while the investigation continues. The next verified milestone will be the medical examiner’s determination of cause and manner of death, and the family has asked for privacy in the meantime.
If you or someone you know is struggling with substance abuse, the SAMHSA helpline is 1-800-662-HELP, and anyone facing mental health challenges or emotional distress can call or text 988, or chat at 988lifeline.org, 24/7.
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