The Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office charged an Osprey woman with Manslaughter after she knowingly provided a man with furanylfentanyl, an opioid derivative, which later contributed to his death.
Deputies responded to a home in the 4100 block of Marseilles Avenue in Sarasota, on January 6, for a heroin overdose. When they arrived, deputies and paramedics administered the opioid-reversal medication naloxone, and transported the patient to the hospital. Two days later on January 8, the patient, 39-year-old Michael B. Galler, died. Through investigation, detectives learned that Lisa Ross, DOB 09/11/77, provided the substance to Galler and knew it contained fentanyl. As the investigation continued, a report from the 12th District Medical Examiner’s Office confirmed Galler died because of deprivation of oxygen due to intoxication of furanylfentanyl and cocaine. Ross was arrested Thursday and charged with a single count of Manslaughter. She remains in custody at the Sarasota County Jail without bond.
“This is another example of our four-pronged approach to tackle this growing problem in our community and across the country,” said Sheriff Tom Knight. “We work carefully to educate, prevent and treat those who need help but enforcement is our true priority. We will continue to aggressively investigate these overdoses and put dealers behind bars, until we eliminate the supply and demand of these deadly drugs.”
This is the second time the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office charged someone with Manslaughter related to an overdose. Detectives also charged a man in May for Culpable Negligence, a misdemeanor, after he knowingly provided a man with carfentanil, an opioid 10,000 times more potent than morphine.