A Lancaster man will serve at least four years in prison for supplying heroin to his 16-year-old daughter, who overdosed, stopped breathing, and had to be revived by emergency-responders.
Kerry J. Long, 36, pleaded guilty Thursday in Lancaster County Court to endangering a child, felony drug-dealing, and corruption of minors regarding the Oct. 8, 2016, incident at a home on Poplar Street.
In exchange for the guilty plea, Long will serve 4 to 8 years in prison, in accordance with a plea agreement arranged by Assistant District Attorney Karen Mansfield.
Lancaster County Senior Judge Joseph Madenspacher, who accepted the terms and ordered sentence, told Long his daughter could have died.
She almost did, according to city police. She had turned blue and stopped breathing. A city police officer administered a dose of Narcan which was ineffective. Additional doses, administered via IV, were effective.
Mansfield pointed out in court that Long had been supplying heroin to his daughter for the year prior to the overdose.
Long apologized in court, saying he was dealing with his own addiction.
Police determined the dose that caused the girl’s overdose tested positive for levels of fentanyl, a pain-reliever 40 to 50 times stronger than heroin being sold on the street, according to the Drug Enforcement Administration.
Lancaster city police Detective Heather Halstead filed charges.
MEDIA CONTACT: Brett A. Hambright, 717-295-2041; bhambright@co.lancaster.pa.us; Twitter: @BrettHambright