Mar 5, 2007 11:19 am US/Eastern
Charges Possible In New Castle Student's Death
If an autopsy shows that drugs caused Erica Million's death, prosecutors say criminal charges could be filed against the person who supplied the pills
NEW CASTLE (KDKA) ―
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Erica Million, 16, died at Children's Hospital on Sunday
KDKA
A New Castle High School student is dead after an apparent drug overdose; now authorities are looking at whether criminal charges should be filed in the case.
Erica Million, 16, was found unconscious in a classroom on Tuesday.
Since then, the teenager had been fighting for her life at Children's Hospital; but Million died yesterday.
New Castle police are investigating allegations one of Million's classmates gave her several Oxycontin pills, which she allegedly crushed and snorted.
Investigators say snorting three of these powerful painkillers is the equivalent of taking 48 Percocet pills.
"She then became sick from the medication," Million's father Gary Mumford told reporters last week. "She laid her head down on her desk during a classroom movie. She was not moving. She was not noticed for 20 to 30 minutes. She suffered severe lung damage that led to cardiac arrest."
If an autopsy reveals that the drug caused her death, prosecutors could file criminal charges against the person who supplied the drug.
In fact, the Lawrence County district attorney's office says that if the results show the pills caused Million's death, criminal charges are possible.
If the person is a juvenile, the DA's office adds, he or she would be charged as an adult.
(© MMVII, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
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