Seven witnesses testified during the first day of a jury trial for a Syracuse man charged with dealing drugs to a woman who overdosed and died.
Shane Ashley Holloway, 53, of 306 W. Valleyview Drive, Syracuse, is charged with dealing in a controlled substance resulting in death, a level 1 felony.
In his opening statement, Prosecutor Brad Voelz described Nicole Coburn, the 41-year-old victim in this case, as a "beautiful woman who was loved."
"She had a job, she had a fiancé ... but she was also a drug addict," said Voelz.
Voelz noted Coburn had been recently sentenced in an Elkhart County case and was on home detention at the time of her death.
"She was sincere in working hard toward sobriety," said Voelz. "But Shane Holloway was also living where Nicole was and provided drugs to her. Shane's actions directly led to the untimely and tragic end of Nicole's life. We are confident you will find Shane Holloway guilty of dealing drugs which resulted in Nicole Coburn's death."
Defense attorney Austin Rovenstine told the jury they would see evidence of an "unfortunate death."
"Whenever there is an unnatural death, there is lots of pressure to find someone responsible," said Rovenstine. "Shane Holloway is the target authorities latched onto. Everyone connected in this death has an incentive to lie ... they were scared of the consequences."
Rovenstine said there was "great irony" with the involvement of Chelsi Clevenger, a witness the state plans to call for testimony in the case.
"Chelsi brought drugs from South Bend and gave them to Shane," said Rovenstine. "Serious charges require serious scrutiny, and there's just reason to believe Shane Holloway is innocent. You'll get as close to the truth as you can and when you do, you will find Shane not guilty."
The state's first witness was Chuck Losee, who was Coburn's fiancé. Losee said he, Coburn, and Holloway all lived at Robert McKibben's residence in Syracuse.
He described Coburn as full of life but that she suffered from drug addiction. A year prior to Coburn's death, both Coburn and Losee were incarcerated on drug-related charges. Losee said Coburn was sober while she was in jail and at work release. When she was then placed on home detention, Losee said she was subject to random drug tests and home visits.
Losee testified that Coburn was sober for close to a year before her death. He told those at the residence to not bring drugs into the home, but admitted to continuing to use drugs outside of the residence. Losee told the jury he did not tell Coburn about his drug use while they resided there.
Losee said he and Coburn were in a relationship for seven years and could tell when she was under the influence. He said Coburn did not show any signs of using drugs before her passing.
During cross-examination by Rovenstine, Losee said he partially felt it was his fault Coburn used drugs. On the day of Coburn's death, Losee used drugs at a friend's house and said Clevenger was there.
Losee said afternoon phone calls occurred every day between him and Coburn, as Losee would take Coburn to work. On Aug. 25, 2023, the date of Coburn's death, Losee said he did not receive a phone call from Coburn. He called Coburn twice and received no response.
After using drugs at his friend's house, Losee said he began going back home, stating it was unusual for Coburn not to call about getting to work. When he was unable to contact Coburn, Losee called Holloway two separate times in the span of a few minutes.
During the first call, Holloway allegedly said Coburn was in the shower and did not have to work. When he was called a second time, Holloway was at a pantry about a quarter mile away from the home. Losee said Coburn always had her phone with her and was "extremely concerned" when she did not respond to his calls.
Losee said he and Holloway arrived at the residence at the same time and found Coburn unresponsive in a bathroom. Losee began performing CPR and asked Holloway to call 911, which he did.
When asked about the presence of drugs, Losee said he saw drugs on the floor and told Holloway to get rid of them. He also noted seeing a bag with a marking similar to those Clevenger usually used for distributing drugs. Losee testified about seeing a burnt straw in the bathroom and that he had only witnessed Holloway use burnt straws for drugs.
In cross-examination with Rovenstine, Losee said he wanted to get rid of the drugs to protect everyone inside the residence, including himself. Losee talked with law enforcement voluntarily two months after Coburn's death and said he was evicted from the home where Coburn died. He noted Holloway helped him out with hotel accommodations in Goshen following the eviction.
While being questioned by Voelz, Losee said he knew Holloway his whole life and gave him the benefit of the doubt in this matter, but realized "things weren't adding up." He noted Holloway being at the pantry during his second call and described that as a red flag.
"There's a whole array of possibilities that seemed off to me," said Losee.
Losee also described his fear of fentanyl, the drug alleged to be responsible for Coburn's death.
"It's ruined my life, my friends' lives," said Losee. "It robs you of your moral compass and makes menial tasks almost impossible."
Elizabeth VanDenDriessche, an Elkhart County Community Corrections case manager, was Coburn's case manager at the time of Coburn's death. VanDenDriessche said Coburn successfully completed work release and was moved to electronic monitoring on July 21, 2023. She said home visits and drug screens occurred at minimum once a month and were random.
The most recent home visit at Coburn's residence was on Aug. 4, 2023. VanDenDriessche said she didn't have any indications Coburn was using drugs while she was being electronically monitored.
Rovenstine asked if community corrections would be aware of Coburn going to drug houses. VanDenDriessche said she would know Coburn's location through GPS monitoring, but that she would not know if the location was a drug house.
Syracuse Police Officer Cody Leer was one of the responding officers to Coburn's overdose. He said he and another police officer administered Narcan to Coburn and assisted with CPR. Leer also testified about going to a bathroom in the residence and finding a piece of foil on the floor.
During his time at the scene, Leer said there were no signs of life from Coburn and that she was declared deceased at the scene.
A toxicologist and two forensic analysts were called by the state to discuss testing they completed in this case.
Anna Straka, a forensic analyst at Great Lakes Labs, said two physical items submitted for testing in this case tested positive for the presence of fentanyl.
Tony Schmucker, a Nappanee Police officer who also works on the NET 43 Drug Task Force, is the lead investigator in this case. Schmucker said he received a search warrant for McKibben's residence after Coburn's death. During the search, officers found a piece of foil and plastic bag with markings in a toilet. However, this toilet was in a bathroom different from the one Coburn overdosed in.
A piece of foil with residue and a burn mark was located on a cabinet in the bathroom Coburn was found in. Schmucker noted law enforcement did not find a straw or torch at the scene.
Schmucker also completed interviews with witnesses and collected cellphones belonging to Holloway and Coburn as evidence.
Upon searching Holloway's phone, officers found a text conversation from Aug. 24, 2023, between Holloway and someone listed in the contact information as "Chelsi girl."
After running the phone number for this contact, law enforcement identified "Chelsi girl" as Clevenger.
Schmucker said he's known Clevenger since she was a child and witnessed her go down the wrong path with drugs. He testified that his knowledge of her prior to this case did not change his opinion on how he thought charges should have been filed.
He interviewed Clevenger about this case while she was incarcerated at the Elkhart County Jail on Sept. 19, 2023. Schmucker described Clevenger's attitude at that time as "argumentative and deceitful."
The trial will continue at 8:30 a.m. Wednesday, Nov. 13, with the state calling further witnesses for testimony, including Clevenger.