Albany man sentenced for manslaughter in fatal fentanyl overdose

On Friday, May 26, Linn County Circuit Court Judge Rachel Kittson-MaQatish sentenced 47-year-old Thomas Turner to 75 months in prison following convictions of second-degree manslaughter and unlawful manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance.

Linn County District Attorney Doug Marteeny said during Friday’s hearing that Turner provided a 20-year-old Albany woman with fentanyl that ultimately led to her fatal overdose in November 2021.

Turner was initially charged with four counts of unlawful manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance and one count of first-degree manslaughter.

As a part of a plea agreement between the prosecution and defense, Turner pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of second-degree manslaughter and one count of unlawful manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance. The rest of the charges were dismissed.

According to Marteeny, Turner supplied drugs to the victim and gave the victim blue M30 pills. The victim was friends with Turner’s step-daughter, Destiny Maker.

Maker was convicted in Linn County Circuit Court in January of criminally negligent homicide and unlawful manufacture or delivery of a controlled substance. She was sentenced to 18 months in prison for her role in the victim’s fatal overdose.

During Friday’s sentencing, Marteeny detailed the events leading up to the victim’s death.

A couple months before her death, Turner provided the victim with fentanyl. At the time, the victim overdosed and 911 was called. The victim survived thanks to Narcan.

In November 2021, five days before the victim died, she again overdosed on fentanyl. But Turner discouraged witnesses from calling 911. Narcan was administered and she survived.

Days later, she again overdosed and was taken to the emergency room where she was pronounced dead. Turner did not go with her into the hospital, according to Marteeny.

“It was clear Mr. Turner was dealing poison in our community,” Marteeny told the court.

Although the victim died in November 2021, Turner wasn’t charged until this year. According to Marteeny, Turner lied throughout the investigation and tried to protect himself.

During sentencing, the victim’s parents each made statements to the court. The victim’s father said he was friendly with Turner and had always spoken to him dad-to-dad when it came to their daughters.

He didn’t have much to say to the court, but he urged Turner to go to Jesus and turn his life around.

The victim’s mother said her daughter’s death has “created such a void” inside of her.

Since the victim’s death, defense attorney Arnold Poole said Turner has felt remorse and indeed has tried to turn his life around. Poole said Turner did a training at local addiction recovery services organization CHANCE and became a peer mentor there. 

When it was his time to address the court, Turner spoke solemnly, saying he told his loved ones not to come to court and say nice things about this character to the judge.

“This isn’t a day about me,” he said. “If anything, it’s a day about (the victim and her family).”

He added that he hopes one day the victim’s family will forgive him — not for his sake but for their own.

Before handing down the agreed-upon sentence, Kittson-MaQatish expressed her frustration at what Turner and so many others have done.

Addressing the victim’s family, she said: “You have more kindness in you than I do at this moment.”

As a judge, Kittson-MaQatish said she has seen many young women get hooked on drugs because predators provided them with the substances. She emphasized how thankful she was that a drug dealer was facing such severe charges. 

“I’m so grateful for the D.A. for pursuing these charges because I’m tired of seeing people like you ruining young girls’ lives,” she said.

Fentanyl is a growing problem in Linn County. The county is a designated High Intensity Drug Trafficking Area, partially due to its proximity to Interstate 5. 

The increasing concern about the synthetic opioid in part stems from a growing number of overdoses. In the span of a single week in March, four people died of fentanyl-related overdoses in Linn County. During that week, there were also 10 nonfatal overdoses and 13 doses of Narcan administered.

As of March, Albany Police Department had counted 28 overdoses in the city for 2023. Of those, 24 were fentanyl-related. In 2022, there were 61 fentanyl-related overdoses for the entire year.

Fentanyl is of high concern among Oregon legislators too. State Sen. Sara Gelser Blouin​ was among the sponsors of Senate Bill 238, which would establish school district-implemented curriculum about the dangers of fentanyl and other synthetic opioids. 

Earlier this month, the Oregon House of Representatives passed the bill. The bill awaits signature from Gov. Tina Kotek.

After sentencing, Linn Interagency Narcotics Enforcement Detective Joe Clausen said this was one of the most severe sentences he has seen in a case like this.

He hopes it will send a message to the community that law enforcement is willing to go out and investigate these sorts of cases to find who is culpable. He said he is thankful to work with a D.A. who also wants to pursue these kinds of charges.

Marteeny said he’s been working with the victim’s family to urge state legislators to create a statute for fatal drug overdose homicides. In Washington, there is a controlled substances homicide law on the books.

“It’s a battle we still need to fight for,” Marteeny said.