A defense attorney on Wednesday compared a Barberton man’s charges of selling drugs that led to a woman’s overdose death with charging gun manufacturers when firearms are used to kill.
“Smith & Wesson isn’t criminally liable if someone uses one of their guns to kill someone,” attorney Scott Rilley told the jury during closing arguments.
He went on to say drug dealers shouldn’t be held responsible either when an addict dies after using their products.
Rilley’s client, Kevin Ecker, is the first person in Summit County’s history to take involuntary manslaughter charges to trial related to a drug addict’s overdose death. Ecker also faces a list of other charges related to his alleged trafficking of heroin, fentanyl, methamphetamine and marijuana.
Prosecutors allege Ecker’s fentanyl — a drug similar to heroin but much more potent — killed Jessica Canada Holmes, a 21-year-old Akron woman struggling through an addiction to heroin. She died March 22, 2015.
Assistant Prosecutor Jon Baumoel told the jury Holmes should take some blame in her death, but so should Ecker, 30, because he knew how dangerous his products were.
“Her using drugs voluntarily is not a defense,” Baumoel said. “If a drug dealer sells drugs to an addict, what’s going to happen? They’re going to use those drugs and potentially die from it.”
The jury began deliberating the case Wednesday afternoon and had not reached a verdict Wednesday evening.
Baumoel began closing arguments by guiding the jury chronologically through the case. Days before her death, Holmes and Ecker allegedly exchanged text messages about drug prices and meeting locations. During police interviews after her death, detectives reported Ecker told them he warned all his customers how potent his products were.
“Drugs are dangerous. Heroin can kill, fentanyl can kill,” Baumoel said. “Kevin Ecker knows how dangerous [fentanyl] is.”
But Ecker’s attorney said prosecutors were charging Ecker with far too many crimes to “see what sticks.”
“What the state of Ohio has done is throw the kitchen sink at Mr. Ecker,” Rilley said.
He also alleged police pursued charges against Ecker without considering any other suspects.
“They had their eyes focused on Kevin Ecker,” he said.
Baumoel said police pursued Ecker because of the text messages and because he was the last person to see Holmes alive.
In summary, Baumoel said the case is about a woman’s life — not sympathy for a drug dealer.
“This case is about life or death,” the prosecutor said. “But the defendant chose to get into that game, that business of life and death. And in that game of life and death, Jessica lost.”
Nick Glunt can be reached at 330-996-3565 or nglunt@thebeaconjournal.com. Follow him on Twitter @NickGluntABJ.