Grapevine woman gets probation in heroin overdose case

A woman who bought heroin for a friend who overdosed and died last year was sentenced Monday to eight years of deferred adjudication probation.

Shannon Elise Rozenburg, 26, of Grapevine pleaded guilty to manufacture/delivery of a controlled substance causing death or serious bodily injury, a third-degree felony punishable by up to 10 years in prison.

Rozenburg acknowledged to investigators that she bought heroin for Derek Brown, 24. She told police that she dropped it into his mailbox and picked up money he left there for her.

Brown’s body was found on Jan. 31, 2015, in a bathroom of his home in the 2800 block of North Creekwood Drive in Grapevine, police have reported.

His death was caused by acute morphine intoxication, according to the Tarrant County medical examiner’s office, which ruled the death an accident. Needle marks were found on Brown’s upper extremities, his autopsy report said.

Heroin converts to morphine after it is ingested and can kill in large doses, a spokeswoman for the medical examiner’s office said. Toxicology tests found morphine, codeine and THC (tetrahydrocannabinol, one of the active ingredients in marijuana) in his system.

According to arrest and search warrant affidavits:

Police were dispatched to Brown’s residence about 1:35 p.m. Jan. 31 where a woman who identified herself as Brown’s girlfriend told them she found Brown dead on the bathroom floor. There was a cup in the sink with a hypodermic needle next to it, she said, but she moved the needle so that Brown would not get in trouble.

In searching the house, police found a needle, a leather strap and other drug paraphernalia.

The woman told officers that Brown had overdosed on heroin before, but she didn’t realize he was still using the drug. Another person gave investigators the names of people who might have provided Brown with heroin, and Rozenburg’s name was included.

Police stopped Rozenburg on Feb. 4, 2015, for a traffic violation, and she told officers that she had heroin in her purse. During further questioning, Rozenburg said Brown had sent her a text asking her to buy a gram of heroin for him and to put it in his mailbox.

Rozenburg got the heroin from a dealer at a Bedford Motel 6 and put it in Brown’s mailbox, picking up the money that Brown had left inside. Rozenburg told officers that she had purchased heroin for Brown on other occasions.

If Rozenburg completes the terms of her probation, a conviction will not appear on her record. If she fails, she could be sentenced by state District Judge Mike Thomas to 10 years in prison.

Rozenburg was ordered to remain in custody for testing until further notice from the court. It is unclear what testing will be done.

This story was originally published April 19, 2016 at 6:21 PM with the headline "Grapevine woman gets probation in heroin overdose case."