3-year sentence handed out for cocaine-induced death

4/24/2001

A North Toledo man whose girlfriend died after he injected her with cocaine should have known the potential consequences of his actions, a Lucas County Common Pleas judge said yesterday.

Frederick A. Roe, 43, of 5533 Bennett Rd., was sentenced to three years in prison by Judge Charles Doneghy for reckless homicide. The judge ordered that a 10-month sentence for possession of cocaine be served concurrently.

“Simply because there was a joint agreement between the victim and the defendant does not minimize the nature of this offense,” Judge Doneghy said.

Prosecutors said Roe bought one-eighth of an ounce of cocaine Jan. 10 for himself and his girlfriend, Darlene Schamp.

Ms. Schamp, 38, died after Roe - with her consent - injected her with the drug three to five times.

Ms. Schamp died from the high toxicity of the cocaine in her blood, prosecutors said.

Ms. Schamp, who had 8 and 12-year-old daughters and worked in a supermarket delicatessen, was found dead in her home the next day.

Roe, who called police to report the incident, tried to commit suicide after he found his girlfriend. Police found him in his home with self-inflicted stab wounds on his neck.

Jon Richardson, Roe's attorney, said his client feels so bad about what happened that “he tried to impose the death penalty on himself.”

“Frederick contributed to the loss of life of the person he loved the most in the world,” Mr. Richardson said.

Judge Doneghy said he wrestled with how stiff of a sentence Roe should be given. He said he couldn't give a light sentence because he viewed the situation being similar to a fatal traffic accident in which a passenger dies while a drunk friend is at the wheel.

The judge could have given Roe up to six years in prison had he given maximum sentences and ordered that they be served consecutively.