ST. GEORGE – Chelley Bullis burst into tears Monday afternoon in the Washington County 5th District Court when the court bailiff announced that her daughter, Chelsea Hunerlach, was physically unable to attend her own video court hearing from the Washington County Purgatory Correctional Facility.
Hunerlach was arrested on drug charges Thursday evening after calling for help when her ex-husband, Jon Vincent Paxman, 22, of St. George, overdosed on heroin in a room at the Coronada Inn & Suites in St. George.
Upon entering the hotel room, first responders found Paxman lying on the floor, according to court documents. Paramedics were able to revive him with Narcan, an opioid antagonist, and ground ambulance transported him to Dixie Regional Medical Center.
After her daughter’s arrest, Bullis began trying to work with Washington County officials to get her daughter the medical attention that she needed while incarcerated.
Bullis said her 20-year-old daughter is disabled and chronically ill, both mentally and physically. “She basically has the capacity of a 14-year-old,” Bullis said, going on to say that her daughter, weighing a mere 90 pounds, has a compromised immune system and that her body doesn’t produce antibodies.
Who cares?
Bullis said correctional facility authorities denied her daughter her prescribed medication and that she explained to them: “If she doesn’t get her meds, she’s not going to eat and she’s going to get very sick and you’re probably going to have to transport her to the hospital,” and said:
They are meds for cancer patients. They are meds for bipolar schizophrenia. They are meds that you cannot be taken off of. You have to be weaned off them. It is highly dangerous.
“She’s on lots of medication,” Bullis said. “She has some very rare medical conditions that are uncommon for a person of her age. She is very sick and bottom line, they don’t have the chronic medical facilities there.”
Washington County Sheriff’s Office Chief Deputy Jake Shultz, who oversees jail operations, said once an inmate is in custody, the correctional facility’s contract physician becomes the inmate’s primary care physician because they’re the ones that now have to authorize the prescription for whatever medications the inmate may be on.
“Generally, what we do,” Shultz said, “we will listen to whatever they say they’re on. We take what they have and verify with whoever their outside provider is that yes, they’re on this prescription, yes, they’ve been diagnosed with this, and more often than not, if there’s any question, they’ll get whatever medications that doctor says they’re supposed to have until our doctors can make their own diagnosis – either agree or disagree – but in the meantime, they get the benefit of the doubt, as long as that medication is allowed in the facility.”
Bullis said she was told by Jon Worlton, the facility’s medical administrator and mental health coordinator, that some of her daughter’s prescribed medications were acceptable in the jail, however, he was not going to allow her to take them because he did not know what type of medication or illegal drugs her daughter had been on.
Bullis said, “I asked him ‘well didn’t you pull a blood draw?’”
Hunerlach is also limited on a soft food diet and, Bullis said, the correctional facility doesn’t have the dietary capacities to meet her daughter’s needs.
“She has a portion of her jaw missing,” Bullis said. “She is undergoing a full mouth restoration and the day before getting arrested, she had had two crowns and a lower filling so she was in a lot of pain.”
Shultz said:
We do special diets based on a religious need or a medical need, not on a preference. So they can request it, and if it’s a medical need, they request through medical, and if it’s a religious preference, they request through programming. We have a lot of inmates on special diets. We even have inmates on soft food diets, so it’s not like we don’t have it. But if someone comes in and says, ‘hey, I’d like to do the Paleo Diet’ we’re not going to do that if it’s not a legitimate religious need or medical need. There have been very few that we haven’t been able to accommodate.
Her daughter was so sick from not receiving her medication and being unable to eat that she could not call home from the jail, Bullis said, and:
She is so not herself that she could not call home after the first night as she started to get weaker because they’ve got a voice recognition system and the telephone system did not recognize her voice when she attempted to call home, which was five times, and finally she gave up. So they said the next time she attempted to call, they would reset it so that it would sound like her sick voice but she never attempted to call back home nor has she even tried to do that text messaging.
Authorities were not taking Hunerlach’s medical condition seriously enough, Bullis said, and the fact that the arrest occurred just prior to the weekend only slowed the process of trying to get her daughter help.
“They just think she’s a junkie,” Bullis said. She went on to say:
This is a criminal matter and I’m going to spend the money on the attorney protecting my child who has never been in trouble basically. It’s not like she’s a drug addict that I’m just looking at burying my head in the sand. I know what the problems are, but mainly the problems, the medical precedes all else. So my concerns are strictly for the medical and then the secondary issue will be that they follow protocol because she met all the criteria for the Good Samaritan Act and she should never have been arrested. As it is, they have already punished her enough by what they’ve done. They have violated her. They should have put her in the hospital or the mental health.
Overdose Good Samaritan Law
Overdose has become the No. 1 accidental killer in the United States. Not only is overdose on the rise in young people, it is on the rise in all age groups including the elderly. Furthermore, it is reported that most people overdose in the presence of family or friends that could have called for help, yet they either didn’t recognize signs of an overdose, hesitated to make a call or were afraid of criminal prosecution.
The Good Samaritan law takes the position that no person who suffers an alcohol or drug overdose should die because of fear of criminal charges, and that it is within the state’s best interests to encourage reporting dangerous situations where they occur to save lives.
“My daughter called 911, stayed with him, the cops arrived and everything,” Bullis said, “and they booked her and arrested her.”
Hunerlach was charged with one third-degree felony for possession of heroin and a class B misdemeanor for possession of drug paraphernalia.
Punishing people who seek help for someone who is overdosing is exactly what Utah’s Good Samaritan law was supposed to stop.
Signed by the governor in March, the Overdose Reporting Amendments are designed to give immunity and offer legal protection to any Good Samaritan who reports an overdosing victim in good faith and then continues to cooperate with rescue personnel.
Hunerlach’s Attorney, Larry Meyers, said after Monday’s hearing that they appreciate the county attorney’s office taking a look at this case.
“Our position is, we think that it is a Good Samaritan case,” he said, “and that we’re asserting that affirmative defense and we’ll talk to the county attorney’s office in more detail and proceed from there.”
Meyers went on to say:
The Good Samaritan is written up as an affirmative defense which means that if the county continues to prosecute then you have to raise that affirmative defense at trial and the person who’s deciding the case would find the facts. There would be a jury instruction that says this is what you’re looking for and if these facts are met then you should find her not guilty based on affirmative defense. So I don’t know which way the county attorney’s office will go but it’s our view that they should dismiss it, but they’re going to do their analysis.
You want to encourage the public policy, Meyers said, if someone is having an overdose, people aren’t too afraid to report it.
One thing at a time
Meyers and Bullis said their first priority was to attend to Hunerlach’s health condition.
On Monday afternoon, Bullis’ daughter was released on an O.R. order – a release on her own recognizance. O.R. release is no-cost bail. Defendants released on their own recognizance are required to sign a written promise to appear in court as required, and no bail has to be paid. However, all other aspects of bail remain the same and a judge can place conditions on a defendant released O.R.
Meyers said by doing that, the prosecutor is acknowledging that it appears that the facts of the case reflect the defense that’s given in the Utah Code, yet wants to review it further before making any further decisions.
When Bullis went to pick her daughter up from the correctional facility, she said she was still incoherent and couldn’t dress herself. She said she was told that her daughter had been transported to the hospital Sunday night.
“She was dehydrated and they hooked her up to an IV unit to hydrate her, gave her a Klonopin patch and some anti-nausea and she’s still not eating or drinking,” Bullis said. “I’ve been given instructions that if she can’t keep food down or starts vomiting again, to take her back to the hospital.”
Hunerlach’s next hearing is set for Oct. 6 before Judge John J. Walton of the county’s 5th District Court.
Resources
Related posts
- Man arrested after overdosing on heroin at Coronada Inn & Suites
- Overdose law gives immunity to drug-using good Samaritans; Washington County statistics
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I doubt using heroin in a motel room was very good for her either. She probably wasn’t taking her prescriptions-just getting high.
Jon was let out of jail that same day.
I administer her meds . If she was getting high, OR WAS A JUNKIE & frequently stayed out all night ETC. I would know. She lives with me. It was the withdrawal from her meds that made her sick. The jail knew the risk they had the papers that said DO NOT STOP TAKING MEDS ……I took the meds. to the jail.
Free Chelsea!!! Good Samaritan!!!! The effect of another person staying and calling 911 for a person that overdoses will be influenced by this case and the next overdose may not get that 911 call out of fear of going to jail…. Mom, I feel your pain as you try and save your daughters life as the system pretends they know what’s best.
YEAH !!! Free Chelsea worked. Thank you for your support, it is people like you that offer support and encouragement. Special thank you to Larry Meyers our wonderful attorney, to Joyce & Kim of STG news & to LADYBUGAVENGER.
THANK YOU 🙂 MOM
It’s good to hear the legal system worked for your daughter. Good luck to your family.
Poor girl is a serious junkie..and her mother is in denial. She is in the stage of being seriously Dope Sick..Hope she gets help but most likely she will be looking for a fix before her next court date..The Courts need to drug test her every week
This isn’t about being a junkie, no doubt she and he need to stop doing drugs. This is about calling 911 and getting help for a person that overdoses and saving their life as opposed to leaving them there to die out of fear of prosecution.
THANK YOU !!!! Glad to see a voice of reason and that someone gets it.
Your daughter is not the first to have serious medical issues that get pushed to the side while in that facility. Have her primary physician show up in court and explain to the judge the seriousness and how if something happens to her, you’ll be more than happy to sue the county………Your daughter is not the first!! Look into it 🙂
You do not personally know my daughter so please show some respect and refrain from making remarks based on assumptions you have made about her.
Unless you have nothing better to do.
So what do we have here. Did they commit theft? Did they damage someone’s personal property? Did they harm others? Were they selling?
This is the problem in America. Whether they are liberals or supposed religious people, it’s about nothing more than control. It’s nothing more than sniffing farts and saying they smell good. These people have such a desperate desire to feel superior and feel good about their life choices that they have to force them on others. Really who gives d…*? Does it affect your ability to live? If these people end up with nothing down the road, you don’t have to feel bad for them or owe them anything. No I see, it makes a lot more sense to put them in jail at something like 30k a year while not allowing them to contribute anything to society. Plus all the law enforcement and jail time initially. Well then again, these cases are good for the lawyers.
*Ed. ellipses
NOT SURE WHY U WASTE YOUR TIME READING AT ALL…DO YOU NEED TO PERHAPS GET A LIFE. THESE SERIES OF RELATED ARTICLES ARE ABOUT A LEGAL ISSUE AND SETTING PRECEDENCE. NOT FOR ATTENTION.
I’ll be setting up a GoFundMe.com account for chelsea. Granted, she didn’t kill her baby, so I doubt we’ll get $17,000 for her.
Thank u ..I appreciate the support. I will be making another statement and my daughter is willing to be interviewed as well to shed some light on what happened, and share her story so she can defend herself from some of the rude untruthful remarks some outsiders assume are facts.
NOT SURE IF THIS WAS MEANT TO BE SARCASTIC..BUT IF SO IT IS NOT FUNNY. I ALWAYS GIVE PEOPLE THE BENEFIT OF THE DOUBT. GOODNESS PREVAILS OVER EVIL.
That girl needs to be released! Even if she has a drug “issue”, Mom deserves the chance to get her help, not to be made to feel helpless…….what can we do mom??
UR REALLY SWEET.
MONDAY THE ATTORNEY HAD THE MEDICAL RECORDS AND THE SCRIPTS THAT SAID DO NOT SUDDENLY STOP TAKING MEDS ETC.
THE JAIL CLERK ADVISED SHE WAS TOO ILL TO APPEAR YET FAILED TO SAY SHE HAD BEEN ADMITTED TO THE HOSPITAL… SHE WAS RELEASED TO MY CUSTODY AND IS SLOWLY RECOVERING AFTER ME ADMINISTERING HER MEDS.
IT IS SO SAD THAT THE JAIL’S MEDICAL STAFF ASSUMED MY DAUGHTER WAS JUST DOPE SICK & WOULD NOT ALLOW HER TO TAKE HER MEDS EVEN AFTER BEING CAUTIONED ON FRIDAY THAT SHE WOULD MOST LIKELY END UP DEAD OR NEED TO GO TO THE HOSPITAL AS THE DR STATED.
MOM & THE DR’S WERE RIGHT. YET WHY DO THEY STILL REFUSE TO ACKNOWLEDGE THEIR ERROR. PERHAPS FEAR OF A LAWSUIT.
Wow, mom. Denial. If your daughter really had the mental capacity of a child, how could you let her marry a junkie? If she was really that sick, how could you let her hang out at a skeevy motel? “She’s an adult” you probably say…except when it comes to you acting like she needs mommy in jail. You have no problem describing her symptoms but you fail to name your daughter’s supposed disease. Do you truly think the jail should give an inmate any drug they arrive with? “Sure Doc, my outside doctor prescribed that heroine.” You might want to read the good samaritan law where it says, “a person who reports a person’s overdose from a controlled substance or other substance may claim an affirmative defense to specified charges of violating the Utah Controlled Substances Act.” That means she has a defense…really not even an excuse…just a gimmie, a free-ride. She still had heroine in her purse.
I did not allow her to marry a junkie. Secondly disabled adults have rights to date, go places, have sex and get married. FYI She was granted an annulment. Unless you are a warden, it is unreasonable & illegal to hold your adult child captive. And as far as her health conditions, and medications I have one thing to say HIPPA. If you don’t know what that means, LOOK IT UP.
I think it is interesting that you call “foul” on everything the police, jail, medical staff are doing but you cannot admit that your daughter has big problems of her own doing. You are not going to convince anyone that the annulment meant anything if she was with him in a hotel while he shot up and she had a full syringe in her purse. I do know what HIPAA is. Unless you are a medical staff it does not pertain to you…obviously since you have been explaining her symptoms to anyone who would listen. You and your daughter are a lot alike. ENABLE…look it up.
Again, this not about being a drug addict, this is about calling 911 when someone overdoses to save their life without fear of prosecution…. as opposed to leaving them there to die.
Mike, your comment is completely irrelevant. This is about our militarized police force breaking the newly implemented Good Samaritan Law, which was passed to save lives. Instead the officers failed to uphold the law and illegally imprisoned Chelsea. Period.
Don’t you mean HIPAA? And you obviously don’t understand it so you should “look it up”. HIPAA has nothing to do with your situation and a parent discussing her alleged medical conditions.
I have known this girl for years, 8 years to be a little closer. Way back then she was smoking weed and ciggarettes. It was also under everyone’s impression at school that she was anorexic. So if anything is wrong with this girl is she has been allowed to be on drugs for way too long and just never eats so she can look good for her fake name … modeling.
Yes it would be nice for the law to help her out of this situation. However, if her and her family don’t stop denying her addictions and lifestyle we are all going to just hear of another overdose sooner than later. Law enforcement needs to keep an eye on her for who knows how long because this young girl has been an addict for years.
Ed. ellipsis.
U CLAIM TO KNOW HER BUT FAIL TO GIVE YOUR TRUE NAME….R U PERHAPS ONE OF JONS FRIENDS OR SOMEONE THAT BEARS A GRUDE OR IS JEALOUS.
INNOCENT UNTIL PROVEN GUILTY
She needs to Detox.
I guess she must if been the one on the med room cot I got put into. My cot was dirty with vomit and I had to ask for something to clean it up. Was told that she had not eatten for days by the time she was moved.
However for my first and last time to ever spend time in jail. I was able to get the meds my dr had for me. I didnt have any out of the ordinary issues for a jail. Guards were fair.
She’s lucky her husband didn’t die she could of been up for manslaughter charges but she did admitt to using that night you play you pay
She admitted to using 2 weeks prior, but again this isn’t about them using drugs, its about calling 911 when someone overdoses without fear of prosecution as opposed to leaving a person there to DIE.
This young person has underlying conditions. and It may be that the health care system has failed her in the past. It may be that she has been non-compliant with prescription medications in the past, and it may be that she is addicted to opiates now. It may be that she is found not guilty or not even prosecuted under the Good Samaritan Law.
But one thing is obvious: This parent is an enabler. Advocating for one’s adult child can be a good thing. Making excuses so the adult child can continue self-destructive behaviors is not. The adult child needs proper medical treatment and probably drug rehab if she has progressed to heroin use. The mother needs therapy to learn how she is contributing to the problem.
Good Job Kim.
Also my daughter did not show up with the meds. I brought them to the jail, and all but one was on the list of acceptable meds.
FOR ALL THE RUDE & UNTRUTHFUL ACCUSATIONS SOME OF THE PEOPLE HAVE MADE GOOD JOB. HOPE YOU FEEL BETTER ABOUT YOURSELVES. THIS ONLY ADDS TO MY DAUGHTER’S PAIN. AND JUNKIE BOTH OF THESE YOUNG ADULTS HAVE FEELINGS..THEY R PEOPLE…THIS COULD HAVE BEEN YOUR KID OR YOUR WIFE OR A CLOSE LOVED ONE. STOP BEING SO JUDGEMENTAL AND STICK TO THE SUBJECT AT HAND. IF YOU DON’T LIKE IT..FIND ANOTHER ARTICLE TO COMMENT ON LIKE MIKES’S SMOKE SHOP SELLING SPICE AND GETTING BUSTED TWICE.
You knew from the first article the news printed that you would get opposition. Why in the world would you keep reading and open yourself up to this? Why would you spend your time caring what we think? We don’t know you. We don’t mean anything to you. Obviously you have a different view toward addicts than most of us do. Why are you here?
Have you ever heard the phrase “The lady doth protest too much”? Your time might be better spent helping your kid dry out. And we made a bunch of mean comments on the Mike’s Smoke Shop article, like you suggested, but he got mad and told us to come back over here and bother you.
You can never protest too much for your child. This isn’t about MOM this isn’t about drug addicts. This is about a person overdosing and not running from the situation out of fear of prosecution but a person calling 911 to save that persons life without fear of prosecution. This case will set precedent for all other cases on whether or not a person will call 911 to save a persons life from an overdose without fear of prosecution.
You can never protest too much for your child. This isn’t about MOM this isn’t about drug addicts. This is about a person overdosing and not running from the situation out of fear of prosecution but a person calling 911 to save that persons life without fear of prosecution. This case will set precedent for all other cases on whether or not a person will call 911 to save a persons life from an overdose without fear of prosecution. The next overdose in this county may not be saved out of fear of being arrested
Actually, I did get distracted from the original point, and I can’t disagree with you, ladybug. I was also under the impression that you are somewhat (or nearly completely) immune from prosecution if you’re calling in the interest of saving a life. This case will definitely be worth paying attention, as might actually learn something.
Just goes to show whys type of person MIKE IS…& his wife.
SPICE & BATH SALTS should be re classified as a felony scheduled drug. Obviously the $ made at the smoke shop outweighs the fines. Most of the public that has been around someone on SPICE agree that it is highly addictive and abused. The profit is very high & the majority of it ends up going to the youths as a gateway drug as they claim it is similar to POT but legal. THIS IS AN FDA ISSUE.
Mike is just another drug dealer who preys on our local youth looking to experiment with recreational drugs..that soon becomes habitual use & ruins lives just like Meth or Heroin.
Oh my heck no! Without the appropriate bishop connections, ward recommends and no strong mission to her name, she should be prosecuted with not chance for dismissal for her lapse in judgement and not worthy of a fundraiser.
Sorry Joyce, I held off as long as I could.
I noticed, K the B. But now see what happened?
Joyce
EIC
Tattletale…
KIM is Brilliant….Joyce is the bomb.
Some of the details r not being released for legal purposes.
No one is looking into a formal complaint or to sue at this point.
Follow the story line and all will be shed to light.
Chelsea may or may not elect to do a story based on her medical care at the facility….or other experiences.
KOOLAID, what exactly is a ward recommend? Also, what is a strong mission? How does it compare to a weak mission? Do you even know what you are talking about?
I hope everyone here gets at least some view of how brutally things are handled at the jails in this country. Notice when the young woman was finally taken to the hospital the family was not notified of her serious illness. I was told by the sheriff personally that the jail will let someone die before they notify their family. Then they will insist on mutilating the body with a mandatory autopsy to cover their up mistakes. When they are done with all of that the family can then have their deceased loved one’s body. The sick, scared human being dies alone in the brutal care of indifferent jail staff. They will also lie to you about the condition of your loved one. My family member was badly injured in a fall because of their poorly maintained facility. I was lied to about it. When I finally got him he was cut up and had a concussion from the fall. They claim immunity from any responsibility for that. The food at the jail is inadequate for even a healthy person. THEY DON’T FEED PEOPLE! it is not unusual for a person to lose 20 lbs after being at the jail for a few months. Before you say they deserve it, put your self or one of your loved ones in a place like this for something petty! Or for nothing at all -just because a cop decided to make up charges against you. I had a cop in with a very bad attitude at my door step tell me he was going to arrest me for disorderly conduct. He was on my door step serving papers, throwing them at me etc. and he wanted to haul me off of my own door step because of his attitude. You have to be VERY callous to work at the jail and do the things they do all day long to other human beings. The cops arresting people on the side of the road know all this and go along with every bit of it.
That’s terrible, but it sounds right.
I disagree. I am sure there are time when the guards at the jail are not perfect, but who is perfect at their job?
I was treated with what respect I deserved. Your in jail for breaking the law. It’s not relax time. It’s uncomfortable, the food sucks (do you want to pay more in tax dollars to make their meal more appealing?)
As for the officers who arrested this girl, they did probably save her life. But what I am wondering is why there were in her purse in the first place?
I don’t support drug use, but cops are here to protect and serve, I believe they do.
I hope she does get at least some of her charges dropped, as that will save more lives later.
I literally had no idea about this good Samaritan law, but why would I. I have never been in the position to know that it needed to exist.
I am glad this law is created, it will save lives, but not if anyone does not know about it.
Your in denial or just an obvious liar. I have served time in this facility as well as a few others. It is the cleanest best maintained facility I have ever served time in. As for the food it was very good as far as prison food goes, just because you do not get to stuff your fat a%% till you pop. Does not make it bad or unhealthy it meets or surpasses all nutritional recommendation, and portion size was generous. The staff was very courteous and helpful and answered every question to my satisfaction. And met my every need physically , mentaly, spirituality, medically. Anyone who has served any time here knows this to be fact. So get over yourself and go throw a pitty party some where else.
There is no doubt that there is an underlying problem, that’s why people do drugs to begin with. But that’s not what this is about, this is about after the problem. What do you do when a group of people are doing drugs and one overdoses. Do you leave them to die so you don’t get arrested or do you can 911 and save their life. Well, you call 911 to save their life. That’s what the good Samaritan law is about. To avoid deaths by overdose because people don’t call 911 out of fear. She called 911. She saved his life by doing that. She didn’t run and leave him there to die. Now that shows her true character. So you all can hate the drug but the addict saved a persons life and that is why there is a law to protect those that call 911 when there is an overdose. free Chelsea!!!
The justice system of Washington county, where you can forget you left a baby in a hot car- no arrest, no charges But its also where you can call 911 for a person overdosing and save that persons life and get arrested for it. Incredible, of course they found drugs, the person just overdosed! But she called 911 and saved his life and got arrested for doing that….free chelsea
It’s interesting how everyone on here thinks THIS “junkie” should sit and rot in jail, but when kids die, or almost die, then its “poor mom”……Can you people PLEASE get a grasp on reality and start b…….* about the real “monsters” in our neighborhoods! GEEZE!!!
*Ed. ellipses
So by the “Good Samaritan Law” directly being disregarded by the police is it safe to say they “pick and choose” what they would like to enforce or what actually goes down? I think too many cops take the law into their own hands and think they are “law” when they just get paid to enforce whatever they feel like based on however they feel that day. Is their any punishment for the police breaking the “good Samaritan law” I am in no way saying what Chelsey did in her part of the OD was in anyway OK but their is a law to protect her to save JOHNS LIFE. We don’t want people to THINK TWICE TO SAVE SOMEONES LIFE FOR CRYING OUT LOUUUUUD!
police reports are always 2 sided, they choose what they want the public to see or interpret from an incident, im gratefull for this artical to point out midigating circumstances in the case, drug use is not ok i will not be hypacritical there but this was a casual use gone wrong should all parties suffer from one persons accident? should a life have been lost due to fear of charges? drug use causes medical issues but these were present b4 she begain using and statistics show that most addicts use due to a chemical inbalance in the brain that is not being treated also people with a history of abuse are denied pain meds and simply have to self medicate. im not excusing anyones actions here simply pointing out all sides of someones case that i feel people are making prejudice stements due to lack of insight and the inhability to emphasise on the matter
AMEN MY FELLOW SOLDIER…THOU SHALL NOT PASS JUDGEMENT AFTER ALL IT’S GOD’S JOB TO JUDGE .
After reading this news article and the comments left, it appears to me that the police may have made the correct decision to arrest her based on a violation of the state “Controlled substance act”. Nowhere in the “Good Samaritan Law” can I find that it is lawful to personally possess controlled substances while acting under the “Good Samaritan Law”. If in fact she did have an illegal control substance in her purse which is in her possession, then she was not immune from being arrested under the “Controlled substance act” The way I read it is the “Good Samaritan Law” only allows immunity if a person calls 911 when someone else has overdosed or possessed a controlled substance. Police officers do not and should not be allowed to find anyone in possession of illegal drugs and not take action by making an arrest. This is the police officers job that they are sworn to do. This is what we pay them to do. If you disagree, then don’t get caught in possession of illegal drugs, because if you do then you deserve what you get, bottom line. I get so sick and tired of junkies saying, “I’m not hurting anyone except myself” and “Drugs are a victim less crime”. That is B.S.. They become egg and sperm donors and those results are the ones who suffer the most at hand of their Junkie, so call parents, who can’t even take care of themselves. Junkies cost tax payers billions of dollars in medical expenses because they destroy their bodies and expect the tax payer to flip the bill for the medical repairs their damaged bodies need to keep them alive so they can get their next fix. They are also a major burden to the welfare, also funded by the taxpayer, because they are unable to work and hold a job. No, I am not a bleeding heart to junkies. I am however a bleeding heart to the real victims, which is the children they have, who are also born junkies, not of their own choice, and their families, brothers, sisters and parents who try to help them, but never will. No one can fix a junkie, only a junkie can fix themselves, and very few really do because they don’t want to. Everyone wants drugs off our streets and out of our schools, until it is there kid that gets caught and arrested with drugs.
Since you don’t see where it says they are immune from criminal prosecution of possessuon , then here an article: Immunity Laws Related to Calling 911 or Otherwise Seeking Immediate Medical Assistance
Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of a 911 drug immunity law. These laws generally provide immunity only from low level criminal offenses such as possession or personal use when a person who is either experiencing an opiate-related overdose or observing an overdose calls 911 for assistance or seeks medical attention for themselves or another. A person who calls for help is generally protected only if they take actions specified by law or if certain circumstances exist. Examples of necessary actions and circumstances include: (1) a reasonable belief by the person calling that they or someone else is experiencing an overdose emergency; (2) reporting the overdose emergency in good faith to law enforcement, medical personnel, or 911 operators; (3) remaining on scene until help arrives; (4) identifying themselves and/or the overdose victim; (5) cooperating with medical and law enforcement personnel; and (6) the offense must arise out of the same course of events as the emergency.
The whole idea behind the Act is to save someones life without fear of prosecution to avoids people dying from overdose. The Act is to save lives…..if you don’t see where it says they are immune from criminal prosecution of possessuon , then heres an article: http://www.ncsl.org/research/civil-and-criminal-justice/drug-overdose-immunity-good-samaritan-laws.aspx Immunity Laws Related to Calling 911 or Otherwise Seeking Immediate Medical Assistance
Twenty-one states and the District of Columbia have enacted some form of a 911 drug immunity law. These laws generally provide immunity only from low level criminal offenses such as possession or personal use when a person who is either experiencing an opiate-related overdose or observing an overdose calls 911 for assistance or seeks medical attention for themselves or another. A person who calls for help is generally protected only if they take actions specified by law or if certain circumstances exist. Examples of necessary actions and circumstances include: (1) a reasonable belief by the person calling that they or someone else is experiencing an overdose emergency; (2) reporting the overdose emergency in good faith to law enforcement, medical personnel, or 911 operators; (3) remaining on scene until help arrives; (4) identifying themselves and/or the overdose victim; (5) cooperating with medical and law enforcement personnel; and (6) the offense must arise out of the same course of events as the emergency.
I agree well said
The good Samaritan law is enacted in Utah. But the cops went against the law. There is suppose to be immunity for both, the person that calls and the one that overdosed.
I’m honestly attempting to determine whether Kim is a phenomenal writer, and brilliant at her job- or the exact opposite. I guess it depends on what job title she is forwarding vis-a-vis that which her editor assigned her. Either way, it’s entertaining. So, what exactly transpired with the tox screen? And what’s the story behind the ostensibly incompatible( and partially omitted?) positions of Shultz and Worlton in terms of the stated protocol and the actual specific enactment- or lack thereof- of said protocol in this case? The circumstances surrounding the blood draw is where this story pivots; WTF is my Sheriffs Office doing exactly?
Kimberly Scott you are my preferred local reporter and a very gifted journalist. Many thanks to both you and St. George News for bringing these difficult and important issues to this community’s attention. Please continue to keep us updated as this case unfolds.