VERO MAN MAY FACE FIRST-DEGREE MURDER CHARGE IN DRUG DEATH

A Grand Jury Will Decide Wednesday Whether The Case Will Go Forward On The
Charge

INDIAN RIVER COUNTY -- A Hillsborough County man is serving a life sentence
in prison after being convicted of first-degree murder for giving a woman a
fatal dose of heroin in September 1999.

A Jupiter doctor awaits a trial on his murder charge after investigators
allege he improperly prescribed high doses of OxyContin to a patient who
later died from a drug overdose.

But first-degree murder charges and convictions from fatal drug overdoses
are rare, according to state records. A 29-year-old Vero Beach man could
face a similar situation if a grand jury indicts him on the capital felony
charge.

William Frazier McCartney III, 29, of the 800 block of Fifth Avenue, may
find out in less than two weeks whether a grand jury will indict him on a
first-degree murder charge. He was arrested April 1 and charged with the
death of a 19-year-old Vero Beach man who overdosed on methadone that
Sheriff's Office detectives allege McCartney gave him.

The grand jury is scheduled to convene Wednesday and may rule on
McCartney's case.

"There were no other drugs in his system, not even alcohol," said Ray
Adams, whose son, Nolan Adams, died in January from the overdose. "The
sadness never is going to go away because Nolan doesn't have another chance."

Although first-degree murder historically is uncommon in these situations,
records indicate prosecutors will pursue the capital felony charge,
punishable by death or up to life in prison.

Local court records show McCartney is one of a handful of people on the
Treasure Coast and only a few dozen statewide whom prosecutors have tried
under this statute.

According to Florida State Statute, a person can be charged with
first-degree murder if the "unlawful distribution" of certain drugs causes
death. The death does not have to be premeditated, according to Assistant
State Attorney Ryan Butler.

"It is important not to let the label of first-degree murder confuse you,"
said Butler, who is prosecuting McCartney's case. "There are several ways
of proving homicide."

The state Attorney's Office has to prove that someone died because of a
drug overdose and that the person unlawfully received it, according to the
statute.

At least four people have been convicted of the capital felony since the
bill became law in 1974, according to court opinions published on the
separate cases.

The Florida Supreme Court filed the most recent opinion less than two
months ago, upholding the decision at the appellant level to convict
Hillsborough County resident Jose Francisco Pena in the death of a 22-
year-old waitress who overdosed on drugs.

Pena, 33, is serving a life sentence in prison for providing the woman with
heroin and Ecstasy in September 1999.

Locally, Dr. Denis Deonarine is scheduled for a trial Aug. 29 in a Palm
Beach County courtroom after he was re-indicted in March 2004 on
first-degree murder charges.

Investigators allege that the Jupiter doctor is responsible for the
overdose-death of his patient, 21-year-old Michael Labzda, for improperly
prescribing high doses of OxyContin, a highly addictive prescription pain
medication.

Deonarine is one of the first doctors in Florida to be prosecuted for
murder on an overdose death, setting the stage for what could be a landmark
case.

A judge dismissed his initial murder charge in January 2004. However, the
state Attorney's Office again filed charges of first-degree murder under
the same statute used in McCartney's case.

Others throughout the state initially have been charged with first- degree
murder in drug overdose cases, but later pleaded down to lesser offenses,
such as third-degree murder or manslaughter.