Woman faces trial in overdose death
NORRISTOWN >> A Philadelphia woman accused of supplying the drugs that led to the overdose death of a Willow Grove man will face a jury that will decide her fate in September.
The trial for Johneia Marie Garrett, 26, of the 1500 block of Widener Place, will begin Sept. 13, according to an order issued by Montgomery County Judge William R. Carpenter, who will preside over the trial, which is expected to last five days.
Garrett, who listed a previous address in the 1900 block of Coolidge Avenue in Upper Moreland, faces charges of drug delivery resulting in death, involuntary manslaughter, criminal use of a communication facility, possession with intent to deliver heroin or fentanyl, tampering with physical evidence and recklessly endangering another person in connection with the April 2019 overdose death of Nicholas Golden in his residence.
The trial date was selected after a conference between the judge
and the lawyers in the case and selected to accommodate the availability of the lawyers and witnesses.
“This date is consistent with the business of the court in dealing with the COVID judicial emergency and its aftermath. There shall be no continuance,” Carpenter wrote in the order. “Attorneys are directed to properly notify any necessary witnesses and to have them available to testify when needed.”
All jury trials were suspended in the county in March 2020 as a precaution when the coronavirus pandemic surfaced. But with vaccinations now increasing and the COVID-19 positivity rate decreasing, judges are beginning to schedule jury trials once again.
If she’s convicted of drug delivery resulting in death, Garrett faces a possible maximum sentence of 20 to 40 years in prison.
Assistant District Attorney Gabrielle Christine Hughes is prosecuting the case. Defense lawyer Thomas C. Egan III represents Garrett.
The investigation began at 5:07 a.m. April 10, 2019, when Upper Moreland police responded to Golden’s residence in the 300 block of Forest Avenue, for a report of an unresponsive man who had a history of heroin abuse, according to the criminal complaint filed by Special Montgomery County Detective Zachary Zeoli and Upper Moreland Detective Sergeant James J. Kelly.
Golden was discovered deceased in a second-floor bedroom. An autopsy subsequently determined Golden died from heroin and fentanyl toxicity, with no other drugs involved or any other preexisting conditions, according to court papers.
Detectives said fentanyl is a synthetic opioid that is 80 to 100 times stronger than morphine.
“Fentanyl is often added to heroin to increase its potency, or sold as highly potent heroin. Many users believe that they are purchasing heroin and actually don’t know that they are purchasing fentanyl, which often results in overdose deaths,” detectives wrote in the criminal complaint.
As they processed the scene, investigators found blue and white baggies consistent with what heroin or fentanyl is packaged in, assorted drug paraphernalia, a rolled-up $1 bill and Golden’s cellphone, according to the arrest affidavit.
Analyzing the contents of Golden’s cellphone, detectives identified Garrett and an associate as drug traffickers who had interacted with Golden on multiple occasions. They further established through multiple texts and Facebook messages that Golden and Garrett had met the evening before his death during which Garrett supplied heroin/fentanyl to Golden, according to the criminal complaint.
“Based on our knowledge, training and experience, it is our opinion that Nicholas Golden and Johneia Garrett were in a dialogue regarding the procurement and sale of heroin and or fentanyl,” Zeoli and Kelly alleged, adding the phone messages showed Garrett agreed to sell Golden two bags of heroin.
An analysis of cellphone data showed that Golden’s phone traveled from his residence to Garrett’s residence on Widener Place in Philadelphia between 7 and 8 p.m. April 9, which aligned with the Facebook messages between them, according to detectives.
On April 10, detectives used Golden’s phone to attempt to arrange a heroin buy and learned through those interactions that Garrett knew the victim had died of an overdose, court papers indicate. Detectives also discovered that Garrett had gained access to the victim’s Facebook account and was deleting evidence about their interactions involving the heroin/ fentanyl buys, according to the arrest affidavit.
The baggies that were found at the scene, as well as the rolled-up $1 bill, were analyzed and tests determined that they contained fentanyl and heroin residue, according to detectives.