Authorities conclude inmate died of self-inflicted overdose

Thursday, June 23, 2005 | 8:44 a.m.

FALLON, Nev. - A jail inmate who was prescribed methadone after falsely claiming to have been in a heroin treatment program died of a "self-inflicted drug overdose," at the Churchill County Jail, officials have concluded.

But a lawyer for the family of Stanley Wayne Brown said the determination leaves too many questions unanswered.

The Lahontan Valley News and Fallon Eagle Standard reported Thursday that a coroner's report determined the 39-year-old Fernley man died of an overdose of methadone and methamphetamine.

"How do they explain a self-inflicted overdose while he was in custody?" said Reno lawyer Paul Quade. "Someone has to explain how he got drugs while in police custody.

"The family feels they have no choice than to move forward with a lawsuit to find out what caused his death."

Methadone, an opiate used to treat heroin addiction and pain, was prescribed for Brown by a Banner Churchill Community Hospital emergency room doctor after Brown told the physician he was being treated at a methadone clinic in Reno, according to Sheriff Richard Ingram.

Brown was arrested in November on charges of uttering a forged check, burglary, possession of methamphetamine and being under the influence of methamphetamine and cocaine.

He was booked into jail on Nov. 10 after being deemed fit for incarceration and given the drug as prescribed, Ingram said. He was found dead in his cell Nov. 12.

Afterward, Ingram and a Dr. Ellen Clark, a Reno pathologist who performed his autopsy, learned Brown was not participating in a methadone treatment program.

"A search of medical records in and around Washoe County, where he allegedly was being treated with methadone for heroin withdrawal, has failed to confirm that Mr. Brown was ever on a methadone maintenance program," Clark wrote in the autopsy report.

"In view of this, the methadone level found in the autopsy blood is sufficient to have caused Mr. Brown's death."

Ingram said he believes Brown knew the risk of an overdose for people who have not built up a tolerance to the narcotic, and misled authorities to commit suicide.

"He intentionally misled a number of people in order to obtain what proved to be a fatal dose of methadone," the sheriff said. "To go to that amount there was sufficient intent. He was not content with just getting high. His intent was to go beyond just a high."

After a lengthy investigation, District Attorney Arthur Mallory determined a coroner's inquest was not necessary and concluded Brown's death was caused by a "self-inflicted drug overdose."

The district attorney said Brown had attempted suicide before.

"He also had extensive contact with law enforcement, as is reflected in his criminal file, and, furthermore, there appears to be a history of involvement with controlled substances used in an unlawful manner," Mallory wrote in a report.

"Other information contained in the file indicates that he gave false information to medical personnel in order to obtain drugs and also that at the time he was arrested he had certain drugs in his system which contributed to his eventual demise," Mallory said.

According to jail documents, Brown allegedly attempted suicide while incarcerated in 1987. The records said he had superficial cuts to his wrist and had written on the floor in blood, "I love mom" and "I didn't do it."

At that time, Brown was accused of two counts of sexual assault and attempted sexual assault. His conviction was overturned by the Nevada Supreme Court in 1994. Brown later pleaded guilty to reduced charges and was sentenced to time served, ordered to pay the victim $100 a month and told to move out of the county, the newspaper reported.

Quade said the family was unaware of an earlier suicide attempt and doesn't believe Brown intended to kill himself last year.

The district attorney, Quade said, "is citing an event that happened 17 years ago as rationale for him trying to commit suicide.

"That's ludicrous," he said.

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Information from: Lahontan Valley News, http://www.lahontanvalleynews.com