Police are warning citizens of a lethal batch of possible heroin/opioids circulating throughout the area following four reported overdoses within a half hour Monday evening and two reported overdoses Saturday in the City of Washington Court House.
The cluster of apparent overdoses Monday began at 7:15 p.m. in the 800 block of Maple Street. The Washington Police Department received a complaint of a suspicious vehicle near the railroad tracks, according to reports. When an officer arrived, he discovered that an individual identified as Mark Christopher Taylor was inside the running vehicle and was “suffering from an apparent drug overdose.”
Fayette County EMS personnel were called to the scene and administered Narcan — a medication used to block the effects of opioids — to Taylor, police said. Taylor, 41, of 624 Carolyn Road, was then transported to the Fayette County Memorial Hospital (FCMH) emergency room for observation.
According to reports, this incident was Taylor’s fourth overdose-related call. He was charged with inducing panic.
Then at 7:37 p.m., officers were dispatched to 605 Fourth St. in reference to a possible overdose. Police found a man identified as Johnathan J. Fraker lying on the kitchen floor unconscious, but still breathing, reports said.
EMS personnel came to the scene and once again administered Narcan. Fraker reportedly revived, walked out to the squad and was transported to FCMH for further treatment. Fraker, 21, of Greenfield, was also charged with inducing panic.
While police were investigating the incident at 605 Fourth St., an officer located another man suffering from an apparent drug-related overdose. Douglas S. Stuckey, 48, of 5707 Locust Grove Road, was reportedly found passed out inside a vehicle across the street from the residence.
Police said Stuckey revived easily, however he was “showing signs of recently taking heroin.” He was also allegedly found to be in possession a needle and metal spoon. He was charged with possession of drug abuse instruments and drug paraphernalia.
Stuckey was taken to the FCMH emergency room for observation.
Finally at 7:45 p.m., police were dispatched to a residence on North Hinde Street on a possible overdose. The man officers found “exhibited signs of an overdose caused by an opiate,” reports said. He did not require Narcan, but was transported to the emergency room as a precautionary measure.
On Saturday at 12:19 p.m., Washington Police Department officers were dispatched to Walmart, 1397 Leesburg Ave., for a possible drug overdose. Police found that several customers and employees were attempting to help a woman who had been placed in a Walmart-owned wheelchair.
The female, later identified as Maria L. Cassady, was barely breathing and was unresponsive, reports said. Two squads arrived and administered Narcan, which revived Cassady. She reportedly told police that she “found a pill on the ground and took it.”
Cassady, 27, of Leesburg, was charged with inducing panic and was served with a court summons at FCMH.
At 1:45 p.m. Saturday, officers were dispatched to the intersection of Peabody Avenue and Delaware Street on a report of an unresponsive woman on the back porch of a residence. Reports said that a woman, identified as Sarah H. Daniels, was found collapsed partially on the porch and partially in the yard. She was unresponsive and barely breathing, police said.
Officers carried Daniels to the yard and placed her on her back to make breathing easier. Two squads and four EMTs came to the scene and transported Daniels to the emergency room for further treatment.
Daniels was treated for an overdose while at the hospital and was revived, according to reports. She was also charged with inducing panic.
