Ocean County, NJ, Man Gets 6 Years in Prison For 2020 Drug Death

An Ocean County man has been sentenced in connection to the death of a woman from a drug overdose in 2020.

Last Friday, 36-year-old Jehmar Barrett of Lacey Township received six years behind bars after previously pleading guilty to a charge of manslaughter.

It was on November 24th, 2020, when Toms River Township police officers responded to a home on Alabama Avenue for a report of an unresponsive woman. At the scene, they discovered the body of the victim who was already dead from an apparent drug overdose.

An investigation by the Ocean County Prosecutor's Office and Toms River Police Department determined that Barrett distributed heroin and cocaine to the victim the day before.

Further investigation and toxicology analysis ... confirmed the presence of fentanyl in the victim’s system. It was determined ... that the controlled dangerous substance distributed to the victim by Barrett – initially believed to be heroin – was, in fact, fentanyl, matching the fentanyl found in the victim’s system. Based upon the toxicology analysis, the Ocean County Medical Examiner’s Office opined that the fentanyl found in the victim’s system was the cause of her death.

On April 29th, 2021, Barrett was charged in connection with the woman's death. He surrendered to police the next day and was then released per state bail reform guidelines.

Barrett's sentence will be subject to the terms of the No Early Release Act, meaning that he will be required to serve at least 85 percent of his term, or just over five years, before he may be considered for parole eligibility.

Ocean County Prosecutor Bradley Billhimer thanked the Ocean County Sheriff's Office; the Toms River, Berkeley Township, and Lacey Township Police Departments, and the Ocean County Medical Examiner's Office for their work in this case.