DRUG DEALER GETS 30 YEARS IN FENTANYL CASE

A 37-year-old Detroit man who sold the fentanyl-laced heroin that
killed a Birmingham high school junior and a Madison Heights man last
May was sentenced Thursday to 30 1/2 years in prison.

The sentence imposed on James E. Coleman by U.S. District Judge
Lawrence Zatkoff was at the top of the federal sentencing guidelines.

Coleman -- accused of selling the drugs that killed 17-year-old
Lauren Jolly and 30-year-old Daniel McElmurry -- pleaded guilty in
November to avoid a possible life sentence.

Coleman's lawyer, former Detroit police narcotics unit Cmdr. Warren
Harris, urged Zatkoff to show leniency, saying Coleman had no idea
that the drugs he sold contained fentanyl.

Fentanyl has been blamed for more than 100 deaths in metro Detroit
since late 2005.

"I think the sentence was too severe," Harris said after the
10-minute hearing. Harris said Coleman grew up in a drug-infested
neighborhood, was introduced to drug trafficking by family members
and, despite prior drug convictions, wasn't a violent predator.

"He's not the villain who was the source of all of the fentanyl
problem, and putting him away will not solve the fentanyl problem,"
Harris said. "In the total scheme of things, James Coleman is a small fry."

Detroit Drug Enforcement Administration Chief Robert Corso said,
"Today's sentencing reflects a substantial sentence for a substantial
violator" and should send a message to Detroit-area drug dealers.

Jolly's mother, Beth Jolly, declined to comment.

Jolly, a student at Birmingham Groves, and McElmurry bought drugs
from Coleman's drug house in Detroit.