A drug dealer accused of selling a mother-of-three the cocaine that killed her is on trial in New York City this week and his lawyer told the court that the woman was a “victim of her own poor choices.”
Dr. Kiersten Cerveny, a 38-year-old dermatologist died on October 4, 2015 from “acute cocaine poisoning” after a night of hard partying with HBO executive Marc Henry Johnson and James ‘Pepsi’ Holder, the drug-dealer.
Videos by PopCulture.com
She was said to have died in or near Holder’s Manhattan apartment, where he was known to deal drugs, but then the two men reportedly dragged her body to the entrance of the building, then called for medical help as they fled the scene.
Holder previously admitted to dealing drugs but denies that he sold Cerveny the cocaine that led to her death.
Matthew Kluger, Holder’s lawyer, addressed the judge about Cerveny’s death, saying, “She was a victim of her own poor choices, she was a victim of decisions she made. But to state that she was a victim of Mr. Holder’s apartment… I don’t see the proximate cause.”
Conversely, the case prosecutor, who is seeking a six-and-a-half-year jail sentence for Holder, stated, “People can’t use cocaine just anywhere. It was James Holder who provided that place”
He went on to insist that, had Holder not used his apartment as a place where people felt comfortable doing illegal drugs, Cerveny “could have lived to see another day.”
Ultimately, the judge stated that at this time he needs more time to consider if Cerveny was a “victim” of Holder. He postponed the rest of the trial until May 11th.
If he does rule in favor of the prosecution, that would mean that Cerveny’s family could sue Holder.
In a separate case, Marc Henry Johnson pleaded guilty to providing cocaine to Cerveny.
More News:
- Partygoer Targeted And ‘Drugged’ Men At Miami Clubs, ‘Stole Tens Of Thousands Of Dollars’
- Aaron Hernandez’s Toxicology Report Shows No Synthetic Marijuana Or Any Other Drugs
- ‘Hell’s Kitchen’ Star Paulie Giganti Reportedly Died From Drug Overdose
[H/T: Daily Mail]
