Daily Local News (West Chester, PA)
Chester woman gets prison time for supplying fentanyl in fatal OD
MEDIA COURTHOUSE >> A Chester woman was sentenced to 4½ to 10 years in a state prison Tuesday for distributing fentanyl to a 51-year-old Parkside man that resulted in his death.
Alexandria Santa Barbara, 40, of the 200 block of Avon Road, entered open guilty pleas before Delaware County Court of Common Pleas Judge Mary Alice Brennan in November to drug delivery resulting in death, involuntary manslaughter and delivery of a controlled substance.
“While we are satisfied with the sentence in this case, we know that no amount of prison time can ever bring back the victim, or undo the pain endured by his family and loved ones,” said District Attorney Katayoun Copeland in a release. “Alexandria Santa Barbara now faces the consequences of her careless and selfish actions, which resulted in one life (being) unjustly taken, and her very own life being forever destroyed.”
Santa Barbara was charged June 5 following an investigation by Parkside Borough Police Officers Patrick McKeown, Louis Scaperotto and Mark Marchesi, along with Delaware County Criminal Investigation Division Detective Timothy Deery.
McKeown responded to a residence on the 200 block of Avon Road in Parkside for a report of an unconscious male at about 8:19 p.m. March 29 and found the victim slouched over on the floor in the master bedroom.
The man, whose identity has not been made public by authorities, was pronounced dead at the scene. Delaware County Medical Examiner Dr. Fredric Hellman ruled the cause of death was “acute fentanyl intoxication.”
Authorities reported that a powder inside a wax package found in the victim’s pocket tested positive for fentanyl, a synthetic narcotic that is 50 to 100 times more powerful than heroin.
McKeown received a tip that the victim had been seen with a neighbor from across the street before his death, identified as Santa Barbara.
Investigators found a text on the victim’s cell phone from “Alex” sent at 6:46 p.m. asking, “Are you OK,” according to an affidavit of probable cause. The text had come from Santa Barbara’s phone, the affidavit states.
Investigators also interviewed a witness in May who said Santa Barbara had confided that she “gave the guy across the street a bad bag,” according to the affidavit.
Santa Barbara admitted during a police interview May 16 that she delivered the drugs that caused the fatal overdose. She also admitted to feeling guilty for the man’s death and that she felt guilty when seeing the victim’s family.
The victim’s widow described him Tuesday as a doting father and loving husband who had been working hard to stay clean. She lamented that the 4-year-old daughter they had together will never know her father, while her 9-year-old daughter will never forget the screams she let out upon discovering her husband’s body.
“The impact on the family is astronomical,” said a family friend. “They’re all broken. They all need intensive counseling.”
The friend and widow said Santa Barbara was well aware that the victim had been recovering from addiction and even spoke to the widow about his progress.
“She knew he was recovered, she knew he was not using, he was trying so hard, and yet she gave that to him,” the friend said.
The widow said Santa Barbara, who she has known since high school, even came over and stayed with her family after the body was discovered.
“She acted like she had no idea what was going on,” the widow said.
Deputy District Attorney Sharon McKenna, Chief of Narcotics Unit, asked for a sentence of 6½ to 20 years, citing Santa Barbara’s knowledge that the victim was attempting to stay clean, as well as her apparent lack of remorse and inability to take responsibility for her actions as outlined in a presentence investigation.
Defense attorney Vince Martini described his client as a drug addict who delivered the narcotics to the victim only at his request and said there needs to be some culpability on his behalf.
Santa Barbara also apologized to the victim’s family
Tuesday, saying she could not express how sorry she is for their loss and the pain they will carry for the rest of their lives.
“I’ve made poor choices in my life, poor choices in my addiction, which is
why we’re all here today,” she said. “I wish I could turn back time, but there’s nothing I can do, and I’m so sorry for that and I’m sorry to (the widow). I know all I can ask for is forgiveness.”
In addition to prison time, Santa Barbara was ordered to submit a DNA sample to state police and have no contact with the victim’s
family. She was given credit for time served.
“For families affected by opioid addiction, holding drug dealers like the defendant accountable is imperative,” said Copeland. “By exposing their actions and making them pay for their injustice, we can take steps towards prevention, even if it will not bring a loved one back.”