Wednesday, January 24, 2001

Friends involved in drug death could face charges of murder

By JOHN MUNFORD
jmunford@TheCitizenNews.com

Kathryn Alline Birge certainly played a role in her own death.

But the way authorities see it, the 20-year-old Florida woman had some help. She was found dead of an apparent drug overdose in a home on Dawn Drive in Fayette County just before Christmas.

Birge, a Dunedin native, was staying with friends here before the holidays, said Maj. Bruce Jordan of the Fayette County Sheriff's Department.

Her death almost led to murder charges for three different suspects. Police believe the suspects helped her obtain the cocaine-heroin-benzo mixture she mainlined, which likely caused her death.

Trouble is, all three suspects were high when the incident took place, leaving none of them credible as witnesses, Jordan said.

"We were looking at the people who drove her to get the drugs and who gave her the paraphernalia to use the drugs," Jordan said.

Charges haven't been filed because of a lack of evidence at this time, said assistant District Attorney Jim Harden. He said the Sheriff's Department conducted a thorough investigation and will continue to probe the death.

"They just don't have enough evidence at this time to go after anyone in particular," Harden said.

The case will remain open and if new evidence is received, murder charges still could be sought, Jordan added.

Any person who commits a felony that could end up in someone's death could be charged with murder, Jordan pointed out.

"If you did as little as hand them the syringe, that's the proverbial loaded gun," Jordan said.

Deputies reported to a residence at 140 Dawn Drive when a 911 call was received when Birge wouldn't wake up. The investigation revealed that she was driven into Atlanta to acquire the drugs that eventually took her life, Jordan said.

That help for a friend could have led directly to the murder charge alone, Jordan said. Same goes for the person who gave her the paraphernalia used to inject the drug, he added.

The theory is simple. If you commit a felony and someone else dies because of that crime, you can be held accountable for murder under Georgia law, Jordan said.

"Each and every case like this, we're going to look at everybody who was involved in the drug transaction," he said.

The case is not closed on Birge's death, either. If new evidence comes forward, charges can still be sought in the suspected homicide, Jordan added.