News (Media Awareness Project) - US MI: Man Gets Prison For Sharing Drugs In Fatal Overdose |
| Title: | US MI: Man Gets Prison For Sharing Drugs In Fatal Overdose |
| Published On: | 2007-02-19 |
| Source: | Livingston County Daily Press & Argus (MI) |
| Fetched On: | 2008-01-12 12:33:22 |
MAN GETS PRISON FOR SHARING DRUGS IN FATAL OVERDOSE
A Howell man learned Thursday that he will spend at least 51 months
in prison for sharing his prescription pain medication with a
36-year-old man who died in 2006 as a result of taking the drug.
Kenneth Roger Hopkins, 33, dressed in a jail-issued orange jumpsuit
and handcuffs, turned to the victim's family and apologized for any
hurt he caused them.
Hopkins was sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in the Michigan
Department of Corrections for sharing his prescription painkiller
Fentanyl with David Maybee, 36, on Jan. 6, 2006. Prosecutors say the
drug contributed to Maybee's death.
Livingston County Circuit Judge David Reader also recommended that
Hopkins receive any psychiatric services available in prison.
The sentence was part of a plea bargain that called for Hopkins to
plead guilty to delivery of a controlled substance causing death.
Maybee's family, who did not speak in court, supported the sentence
recommendation, said Assistant Prosecutor Dan Rose.
Hopkins was believed to be the first charged under a state law that
makes it a crime to cause a person's death by sharing a prescription
medication.
Howell defense attorney James Buttrey said he believes the law, which
went into effect Jan. 1, 2006, was written "to punish drug dealers,"
not someone like Hopkins.
"He isn't a drug dealer; he's a drug user," Buttrey said. "He is
committed to living a better life when he gets out."
Testimony during a two-part preliminary hearing in summer 2006
indicated Hopkins shared with Maybee a substance from an adhesive
patch Hopkins called "more powerful than morphine."
That substance, described as a gel-like blob, was later identified as
Fentanyl -- a prescription painkiller that is described as being 80
times more powerful than morphine.
It can be released slowly -- over a period of 72 hours, for example
- -- into a person's system through an adhesive patch.
However, if the drug is taken inappropriately -- such as orally,
quickly or in large amounts -- it can rapidly cause death.
A Howell man learned Thursday that he will spend at least 51 months
in prison for sharing his prescription pain medication with a
36-year-old man who died in 2006 as a result of taking the drug.
Kenneth Roger Hopkins, 33, dressed in a jail-issued orange jumpsuit
and handcuffs, turned to the victim's family and apologized for any
hurt he caused them.
Hopkins was sentenced to a maximum of 15 years in the Michigan
Department of Corrections for sharing his prescription painkiller
Fentanyl with David Maybee, 36, on Jan. 6, 2006. Prosecutors say the
drug contributed to Maybee's death.
Livingston County Circuit Judge David Reader also recommended that
Hopkins receive any psychiatric services available in prison.
The sentence was part of a plea bargain that called for Hopkins to
plead guilty to delivery of a controlled substance causing death.
Maybee's family, who did not speak in court, supported the sentence
recommendation, said Assistant Prosecutor Dan Rose.
Hopkins was believed to be the first charged under a state law that
makes it a crime to cause a person's death by sharing a prescription
medication.
Howell defense attorney James Buttrey said he believes the law, which
went into effect Jan. 1, 2006, was written "to punish drug dealers,"
not someone like Hopkins.
"He isn't a drug dealer; he's a drug user," Buttrey said. "He is
committed to living a better life when he gets out."
Testimony during a two-part preliminary hearing in summer 2006
indicated Hopkins shared with Maybee a substance from an adhesive
patch Hopkins called "more powerful than morphine."
That substance, described as a gel-like blob, was later identified as
Fentanyl -- a prescription painkiller that is described as being 80
times more powerful than morphine.
It can be released slowly -- over a period of 72 hours, for example
- -- into a person's system through an adhesive patch.
However, if the drug is taken inappropriately -- such as orally,
quickly or in large amounts -- it can rapidly cause death.
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