Saved by his 4-year-old son, overdose dad gets jail time
MEDIA COURTHOUSE » An Upper Darby father who was rescued from a heroin overdose with his wife by their 4-year-old son was sentenced to nine to 23 months in the county prison Tuesday after pleading guilty to two counts of endangering the welfare of children and one count of possessing a controlled substance, all misdemeanors.
Sean Dolhancryk, 32, was given a sentence of six to 23 months in the heroin case, as well as three consecutive months for a probation violation. He was also given five years of consecutive probation and ordered to comply with the recommendations of a drug and alcohol evaluation.
Dolhancryk and 31-year-old Sandra Dicianno were discovered in the bathroom of their house in the 7000 block of Greenwood Avenue a little after 8 p.m. June 7 by Police Officer Robert Bennett, who responded to a call after a neighbor heard the young boy calling for help
The 4-year-old opened the door and directed Bennett to a bathroom, telling him, “Mommy is upstairs, she is sick.” There was also a 1-year-old boy in the house.
Bennett heard gargled breathing coming from inside the bathroom but could not open the door, which was blocked by Dolhancryk’s body. Dolhancryk was “completely blue,” according to Bennett, and Dicianno was curled up on the floor making a gargling noise.
Officer Kevin Donohue arrived and assisted in keeping the boys out of the way until he and Bennett could push the door open. Dolhancryk was pulled out first and administered Narcan, the drug used to counter the effects of opioids. Paramedics also administered Narcan to Dicianno and gave Dolhancryk additional doses of the drug.
The children were taken to a neighbor’s house before being turned over to relatives by Children and Youth Services. Officers later discovered hypodermic needles and other paraphernalia related to heroin use in the bathroom. The parents were treated at a hospital and released to police.
Dolhancryk was on probation at the time for a pair of DUI convictions in 2015. Defense attorney Matt Sprague noted his client has already undergone a drug and alcohol evaluation that recommended long-term residential treatment and asked the judge to allow for immediate parole into a treatment facility at the completion of the six-month minimum.
“I realize what I did and I realize that I messed up, but me sitting in jail is not benefitting me, nor my children, nor my wife, nor my addiction,” said Dolhancryk. “I recognize I do have an addiction, I’ve taken steps on my own while I’m incarcerated to better myself before my release.”
Assistant District Attorney Brian Doherty argued that Dolhancryk should “dry out” as much as possible before returning to society, noting the children also could have come to harm if not for the neighbor hearing the 4-yearold’s pleas.
“It’s one thing if he’s just affecting himself, but clearly he’s not, given the ages of his young children and what they had to be exposed to,” said Doherty. “If not for the 4-year-old’s yelling for help, it’s quite possible that we’re looking at two children having to witness their parents’ deaths in a bathroom because of a heroin overdose.”
Dolhancryk said he and Dicianno began using heroin in 2013, but the couple stopped for about two years before his wife reintroduced them to it. He told Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Richard Cappelli that he sees “somebody who screwed up” when he looks in the mirror, but wants to see “somebody that’s reliable and accountable, dependable, honest, noble.”
Cappelli told Dolhancryk that he cannot hope to overcome his addiction with logic and clearly cannot fight the addiction alone.
“You can’t think of it as something you can reason out of,” he said. “The way you deal with addiction is by looking for help.”
Dicianno, represented by attorney James Wright, is also charged with possession of a controlled substance, endangering the welfare of children and recklessly endangering another person. She is currently free on $20,000 unsecured bail and is scheduled for trial before Cappelli Sept. 25.