Ohio Man Sentenced to Prison After Baby Dies from Fentanyl Exposure

St. Clairsville, OH (WTRF-TV) Cameron Cothran pleaded guilty to the charges of involuntary manslaughter, tampering with evidence, and possession of drugs back in September.

Today he was sentenced to 12 to 17 years in prison.

In April 2024, Cothran dropped his one-year-old baby girl off at East Ohio Regional Hospital’s emergency room and left.

She was then transported by helicopter to UPMC Children’s Hospital in Pittsburgh, where the child died several days later.

“This was a case that was different than many of the other types of cases, because in this case, we had a 13-month-old child who gained access to a very deadly drug, fentanyl, ingested that drug and ultimately died.”

Kevin Flanagan – Prosecutor, Belmont County

“No single sentence adequately reflects the seriousness of this conduct. His entire history in this matter and over these 19 years shows that consecutive sentences are necessary to protect the public from future conduct by this defendant.”

Judge John Vavra – Belmont County Court

According to officials, the child was unresponsive and covered in fentanyl when she was dropped off at the hospital.

The autopsy report found the child had died from acute fentanyl poisoning.

After completing his prison sentence, Cothran will spend the next 12 to 17 years behind bars with an additional 2 to 5 years of supervised release.

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