Suspended lawyer found dead

An attorney whose license was suspended following incidents including drunk driving and suspected opioid use has died.

An attorney whose license was suspended last month following a series of incidents including drunk driving and suspected opioid use has died, according to the Lorain County Coroner’s Office.

Heather B. Wilsey, 27, was facing another count of operating a vehicle under the influence of alcohol or drug, according to a Lorain police report.

But, at about 7:01 a.m. Feb. 20, Wilsey was found unresponsive at a home in the 1000 block of West Eighth Street, where she was pronounced dead at the scene, said Coroner Dr. Stephen Evans.

“It’s under investigation,” Evans said.

The cause of death was not immediately known; an autopsy was scheduled for Feb. 22, he said.

Wilsey, of West 39th Street in Lorain, most recently was charged Feb. 19 with OVI and implied consent, failure to control and a seat belt violation following a crash in the 500 block of Broadway, the report said.

Shortly before 9 p.m., officers responded to a call regarding a maroon 2013 Ford Taurus that crashed into the back of a building and the driver was unresponsive.

Officers located Wilsey in the driver’s seat and noticed her shallow breathing, as well as the odor of alcohol, according to the report.

Believing Wilsey was overdosing on heroin or an opiate, officers administered 2 mg of naloxone as LifeCare arrived on scene, the report said.

Wilsey suddenly woke up shortly after paramedics arrived and she was transported to Mercy Regional Medical Center for further treatment, according to the report.

During questioning at the hospital, Wilsey claimed she didn’t remember anything about what happened.

Wilsey was asked to submit to standardized field sobriety tests, but she refused to submit to any form of sobriety testing, including blood or urine, according to the report.

A K-9 officer alerted to the driver’s seat of Wilsey’s vehicle, but no illegal substance was located inside the Taurus.

Upon being cleared at the hospital, Wilsey was booked into the Lorain City Jail where she posted a $2,100 bond almost immediately, according to jail officials. While in jail, Wilsey mentioned bruises on her legs and indicated she was in a fight earlier but then refused to say more before consulting her lawyer, the report said.

Following her release, Wilsey again told an officer she was assaulted and showed bruises on her back and right arm, according to the report. Wilsey again refused to filed a report, declining to provide an address, time frame or names of those involved, police said.

Prior to her most recent criminal charges, Wilsey made headlines in June 2016 after crashing her vehicle and fabricating a story about the car being stolen by a fictitious black man. Elyria Municipal Court records show Wilsey was sentenced to 10 days in jail and issued a $250 fine for that incident.

The report said Wilsey also had prior OVI convictions in 2008 and 2011.

More recently, Lorain officers responded to two separate Lorain homes — Dec. 23 and Dec. 24, 2016 — to assist Wilsey after receiving reports that she was overdosing on drugs, according to the reports. In both instances, first responders gave Wilsey multiple doses of naloxone before she regained consciousness.

In August 2016, the Lorain County Bar Association filed a formal complaint against Wilsey with the Board of Professional Conduct of the Supreme Court of Ohio for her “misconduct.” On Jan. 5, the Bar Association filed a motion for Wilsey’s suspension, citing her substance abuse issues.

Ohio Supreme Court documents show Wilsey’s license was suspended Jan. 19.

But, at about 7:01 a.m. Feb. 20, Wilsey was found unresponsive at a home in the 1000 block of West Eighth Street, where she was pronounced dead at the scene, said Coroner Dr. Stephen Evans.

Morning Journal Staff Writer Richard Payerchin contributed to this story.

Wilsey