Washington woman pleads guilty to facilitating drug deal that led to man’s death
Mt. Pleasant Township man died after ingesting fentanyl-laced cocaine in 2023
A Washington woman will serve prison time after pleading guilty to facilitating the sale of a lethal batch of fentanyl-laced cocaine that killed a man in 2023.
Crystal Carson appeared Wednesday morning before Judge Valarie Costanzo in the Washington County Courthouse and pleaded guilty to felony drug delivery resulting in death in connection with the fatal overdose of 41-year-old Sean Thomas Caldwell.
Costanzo immediately sentenced Carson, 35, to serve six to 12 years in a state prison for her role in Caldwell’s death. During the hearing, Carson also pleaded guilty to charges of possession with intent to deliver and possession of drug paraphernalia.
Carson was one of three people implicated in Cadwell’s overdose after he purchased fentanyl-laced cocaine and ingested it in his mother’s Mt. Pleasant Township home’s bathroom, where she found him dead Oct. 4, 2023. John Stephen Backner and Amber Joy Elcyzyn were also charged in connection with arranging the drug deal with Caldwell in Chartiers Township. Investigators said Backner purchased the drugs from Elcyzyn, who told police that she purchased them from Carson.
Backner, 58, of Chartiers, pleaded guilty March 18 to the same drug delivery resulting in death charge as Carson, but he was sentenced to one year of house arrest and given credit for time served for the six months he spent in the Washington County jail before he was released on bond last June. Deputy District Attorney John Friedmann said the discrepancy in the sentences was due to Backner’s role in the drug deal and his level of cooperation with prosecutors.
“I can say that without him, we wouldn’t have had this plea from Crystal Carson,” Friedmann said.
He added that the sentence for Carson was in the standard range for the felony charge and took into account her previous criminal record.
Elcyzyn, 37, of Washington, who is facing similar charges of drug delivery resulting in death and conspiracy, is scheduled for plea court before Costanzo at 11 a.m. May 6. While it’s not known whether she will take a plea deal from prosecutors or go to trial, Friedmann said they are hopeful that any resolution will allow Caldwell’s family to move forward.
“Hopefully, that will give closure to Mr. Caldwell’s family in these cases,” Friedmann said.
Carson had been released from jail on unsecured bond following her arrest last spring, but was returned at some point and appeared for her sentencing in prison clothing and shackles. Afterward, sheriff’s deputies took her back to the jail, and she’ll eventually be transported to a state prison to serve her sentence.