A 22-year-old Vancouver man was sentenced Wednesday in Clark County Superior Court to four years in prison for providing a friend with heroin and failing to help her when she overdosed.
Brandon J. Sotelo was charged in January with controlled substance homicide in the death of 23-year-old Kelsy French-Holland.
Sotelo pleaded guilty Wednesday to second-degree manslaughter as part of a plea agreement.
Senior Deputy Prosecutor Anna Klein recommended the 48-month prison term — the high end of the sentencing range — and Sotelo’s attorney did not object.
French-Holland’s body was discovered about 3:20 p.m. Oct. 11 by her roommate, who called 911 to report that French-Holland was unresponsive and appeared to be dead, according to a probable cause affidavit.
Clark County sheriff’s deputies responded and confirmed she had died and said her death appeared to be suspicious, based, in part, on her age and because there were no signs of violence, the affidavit says.
French-Holland’s mother, Sarah Holland, told investigators that her daughter had a history of drug abuse, court records state, and recently abused the prescription drug Xanax.
The mother accessed her daughter’s Google and Facebook accounts, and learned that she had been talking to Sotelo and referenced using heroin just before her death, the affidavit states.
Investigators later recovered a cellphone video shot by Sotelo the day before French-Holland’s body was discovered. In it, he’s heard saying he tried to wake up French-Holland, but she was unresponsive. He’s also seen picking her up off the floor and placing her on her bed, court records said.
Toxicology testing completed in December found that French-Holland died of an accidental drug overdose — a mixture of Alprazolam, also known as Xanax, and morphine, the metabolite of heroin, according to court documents.
Family speaks out
The second row of Judge Daniel Stahnke’s courtroom was packed with French-Holland’s family members, who sat stoically during most of the hearing. Emotions emerged as several of them stood and spoke to the judge.
Sarah Holland noted that it has been nine months to the day since her daughter was found abandoned and dead. She told Sotelo he was a coward who left French-Holland to die alone.
“I’ve known you a very long time. I’m not upset about the drugs. I’m upset about your failure to take any action,” Sarah Holland said.
The mother said she was dissatisfied with the outcome of the criminal case against Sotelo, but she understood there were limitations to what could be done in the criminal justice system.
Stepfather Scott Holland said he personally would never forgive Sotelo for French-Holland’s death.
“Words cannot come close to the anguish we’ve had to endure … The opportunity to say, ‘I love you’ (to French-Holland) is forever gone,” he said.
Stahnke took a moment to ask Sotelo if he understood the language of the manslaughter charge, which stipulates the defendant negligently caused the death of another.
“You failed to take appropriate steps when she died. Is that what you’re pleading to?” Stahnke asked Sotelo, who responded, “yes.”
“That would have been a phone call,” the judge said.
Defense attorney Chuck Buckley said the case was difficult because a young woman lost her life, which is reflective of the opioid epidemic killing people in the county, state and nation.
Sotelo was “in the throes of addiction” when he made the mistake of not calling for help for French-Holland, Buckley said. His client cannot explain to this day why he failed to do so, Buckley added.
Sotelo made a brief statement before receiving his sentence.
“I want to apologize to the family for my actions. It’s a tragedy. I’m sorry,” he said.
