ZANESVILLE − Working cases to prove an individual is responsible for another's overdose death can be difficult, according to Muskingum County Sheriff Matt Lutz and Prosecutor Ron Welch . However, it is something they will continue to do.
Their efforts can be seen in a recent case where the sheriff's office conducted a four-month investigation into the Feb. 22 overdose death of Matthew P. Parmer, which ended in the arrest of a local woman.
Tashia D. Stevens, 41, was indicted last week and charged with involuntary manslaughter, a first-degree felony; corrupting another with drugs, a second-degree felony; tampering with evidence, a third-degree felony; and trafficking in drugs, a fifth-degree felony.
On Feb. 22, sheriff’s deputies were called to the Parmar Gas Station/Store at 1460 Greenwood Ave., where they found Parmer overdosed in the bathroom. He was transported to Genesis Hospital, where he was pronounced dead.
“I’ve always said drug prevention and enforcement were going to be a top priority for this office, and it continues to be,” Lutz said. “We started looking into overdoses pretty heavily several years back.”
Lutz said there are several angles by which to tackle the drug problem in Muskingum County. Overdoses, and holding the people who provide the drugs that cause an overdose accountable, are a component of the overall strategy on the war on drugs.
“I think between the investigations we’ve done, the prosecutions from the prosecutor’s office, and the sentencing from the judges, it sends a message that if you’re going to partake of that activity here, you’re going to be charged,” he added.
Lutz said the sheriff’s office works closely with the Zanesville Police Department on many of these investigations for one major reason: “Drug dealers don’t have boundaries.”
“We’re trying to be as proactive as we can be,” he said. “We’re trying to take drugs off the street, so they don’t harm anyone else.”
Collecting evidence to charge someone in an overdose can be difficult, said Lutz.
“We look at the facts and circumstances and we ask the question, ‘Can we prove who gave this person the drugs that caused this overdose?’” said Lutz. “It’s like drug trafficking. A person doesn’t sell drugs so the other person will die. Most of the time, it’s a consequence of a bad decision made by both people.”
Welch said the argument that the person who overdosed chose to take the drugs doesn’t prevent the person who provided the drugs from being charged.
“(They) can legally be held responsible,” said Welch. “The person would not have had the ability to overdose from the drugs if not provided to them.”
He also said that the amount of drugs the person chooses to take isn’t defensible either — they’re not like prescription meds.
“There is no safe amount of (these drugs),” said Welch.
Welch said investigating and proving guilt in this type of case is complex and requires the evidence to be buttoned up on many fronts for the prosecutor’s office to be able to charge someone.
“The strength of our case is dependent on the job law enforcement does,” said Welch. “(The sheriff’s office has been) very receptive to what our needs are for prosecution. (Their work) allows us to be more aggressive than some places.”
Lutz said drugs will never be eliminated, but it won’t stop the sheriff’s office from making headway in the war on drugs.
“Every step we can take to help is a good thing in my book,” said Lutz. “We’ll continue to do this in the future and take as many people off the streets as we can. You can’t be 100 percent, but we know what’s going on. We just need the information to prove it. And we’ll work these cases until we do.”
This article originally appeared on Zanesville Times Recorder: 'Drug dealers don’t have boundaries:' Agencies work together on overdose cases
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