Painter: Woman dies after digesting drugs

Aug. 01--An 18-year-old Midland woman died Wednesday after swallowing four grams of methamphetamines to avoid detection during a traffic stop on Monday, according to Midland County Sheriff Gary Painter.

Sandy Franklin was taken into custody Monday when police discovered she had two outstanding traffic warrants, and about 36 hours later, jail medical staff called an ambulance to bring the young woman to Midland Memorial Hospital, he said.

"A guard in the female block noticed she was shaking, her eyes unsteady; something was wrong," Painter said. "When they got her to (the hospital), things started happening to her physically, and it got pretty bad."

While Franklin was under medical care, authorities were informed that her boyfriend -- 22-year-old Zane Oneal -- had admitted to Franklin's father that he passed the girl the methamphetamines in a ziplock bag for her to swallow as they were pulled over, Painter said.

"He confessed that they were coming out of a parking lot, police department initiated a traffic stop, and he handed a bag of methamphetamine to Ms. Franklin. She swallowed it and got to the jail and didn't tell anybody," Painter said.

Later Wednesday, authorities notified the municipal court, which dropped the charges against Franklin to show "time served."

"She was only in there on traffic charges," Painter said. "We needed to get her out of the system and let the family come in and do whatever they need to do."

An autopsy was ordered to determine the cause of Franklin's death. Oneal is being held in federal custody, and if autopsy results prove the cause of death to be methamphetamines, he could face a first-degree felony charge of murder or manslaughter, Painter said.

The Drug Enforcement Agency is leading the investigation and is attempting to determine the "course of delivery" in which Oneal handed Franklin the drugs.

While there have been instances of inmates who died from overdoses, it is rare for an inmate to have died after ingesting drugs, Painter said.

Nearly two decades ago a man overdosed by swallowing cocaine, he said.

"He was being released, put his property in his pocket and he fell over --dies from cocaine poisoning," he said.

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