Summit County Common Pleas Judge Lynne Callahan told the Akron man, whose heroin was used in the overdose death of a teen, that he was lucky because he was unconscious from his own drug or alcohol abuse and couldn’t complete the drug transaction.
Prosecutors said Donald Callaghan’s drug use saved him from more severe charges. He was scheduled to sell heroin to Brenda Frye, drugs that lead to the death of her 16-year-old grandson Andrew Frye at a hotel in Green on April 6.
But Callaghan was passed out and couldn’t sell the drugs. However, the grandmother was Callaghan’s girlfriend and knew the location of the heroin. She gave the drugs to her daughter Heather Frye and her friend.
“Callaghan’s charge was based on a search, not based on any of the drugs that we’re saying ultimately got to Andrew,” said assistant county prosecutor Dan Sallerson, who called the case unique. “A search warrant was issued after Andrew Frye’s death and when Callaghan’s room was searched, the drugs were found amongst his possessions.”
Callaghan, 59, of Neville Avenue, pleaded guilty to possession of heroin on Sept. 12. The charge, a fifth-degree felony, carries six to 12 months in prison. He was sentenced to 24 months of probation with a mandatory six months in the Summit County Glenwood Jail. Callaghan was also ordered to be assessed for drug treatment.
“Mr. Callaghan is a drug addict. He is no angel,” his attorney Jeff Laybourne told the judge before sentencing. “Mr. Callaghan would not benefit from a stint in prison … He needs a treatment program. … Do not criminalize a medical issue.”
When asked if Callaghan had anything to say before the court, he was defensive.
“I’m 100 percent sure I played no part in Andrew Frye’s death,” Callaghan told the judge before sentencing.
“I’m not going to say how come you’re so sure, because you’re not here for that and any sentence I give you is not because you played a role in his death and I want you to understand that,” the judge said. She asked if there was anything else he wanted to say.
“I’m sorry for what happened to Andrew,” the defendant said. “I knew him for quite some time.”
Callaghan’s pre-sentence investigation also revealed 43 miscellaneous charges of drug-related incidents, mostly DUI’s and disorderly conduct.
The prosecutor said he was concerned because five days after Callaghan pleaded guilty to the heroin possession charge, he was charged with a drug-related misdemeanor.
The judge said Callaghan’s record showed that he “was a mean, nasty son of a gun or a drunk or drug user who had no respect for the law.”
She told him that sending him to prison wouldn’t do him any good, and would just be a revolving door for him. After serving six months at the Glenwood jail facility the judge said Callaghan would be assessed and must follow through with any drug treatment, and if he faced any further drug-related charges he would serve half of his sentence in prison. He was also warned not to have any contact with anyone connected with the heroin overdose death of Andrew Frye or any drug users or drug traffickers.
Three others who were charged in Frye’s death — including the teen’s mother and grandmother — were sentenced earlier this month on involuntary manslaughter charges and other related charges.
The mother, Heather Frye, 32, was sentenced to nine years for involuntary manslaughter, endangering children and evidence tampering. Brenda Frye, 52, the grandmother, was also sentenced to nine years for involuntary manslaughter and heroin trafficking, and Jessica Irons, a friend of Heather Frye, was sentenced to four years in prison for involuntary manslaughter, evidence tampering and two counts related to other crimes.
Marilyn Miller can be reached at 330-996-3098 or mmiller@thebeaconjournal.com.