Heroin user died two weeks out of prison

The inquiry into the death of 22 year old woman – two weeks out of prison when she died of an apparent overdose – heard that the heroin she was alleged to have taken would have hit her harder as she had been ‘clean’ while incarcerated.

Gemma Ridgard of John Coogan Park, Newcastle, was last seen alive by her father, Gavin – who has since died – in the early hours of April 4 last year.

She was living with him and his sister, following her release from prison two weeks earlier. The previous evening, he stated in his deposition to Gardaí, his daughter arrived into the house with a friend.

“My sister was distracted by her friend because she had tinfoil with her – Gemma said ‘It’s just the last time (to do heroin) Dad,’” he recalled.

At midday on April 4, he went in to check on her. He shook her but she did not wake up, and he thought that she had been knocked out by whatever she had taken.

He checked back again ten minutes later to find that she had no pulse. He attempted to resuscitate her, and rang for an ambulance. The crew got her breathing again and took her to UHG, but she died in the Intensive Care Unit at 10pm that evening.

Before carrying out a post-mortem examination the following day, consultant pathologist, Dr Margaret Sheehan, was given a clinical history of previous heroin use and depression, and incidents of deliberate self-harm.

She found no evidence of puncture wounds, except for those relating to medical intervention.

A blood sample was sent to the State laboratory, which found benzodizapines (‘downers’) at therapeutic levels, and Dr Sheehan admitted her surprise at the presence of methadone – a synthetic opioid, that is prescribed to reduce cravings for heroin – but there was no evidence of heroin itself, nor its break-down products.

“Heroin has a very short life, the drug breaks down between nine and ten minutes after being taken,” Dr Sheehan explained.

“It had been suggested that she had taken heroin up to 24 hours prior to her death, which could account for why I’m not finding the break-down products.”

Ms Ridgard’s mother, Colette, said that her daughter had not been on methadone, as she had been two weeks out of prison, was clean, so had no need for it.

Dr Sheehan, however, said that the blood results were very clear in that regard.

“She had taken methadone, and there was evidence of the break-down products…. If she had taken neither for a time, they would have hit her (harder),” she added.

She said that Ms Ridgard suffered liver and respiratory failure as a result, adding that the benzodiazapines may have reacted badly with the other drugs.

Dr Sheehan agreed with the Coroner for West Galway, Dr Ciaran MacLoughlin, that it was reasonable to assume that this was an ‘opiate death’.

He returned a verdict in accordance with the medical evidence, that death was due to opiate toxicity.

“This is further qualified by ‘misadventure’, in that she embarked on something that had a risk – she didn’t think the risk would materialise, but she died as a result.”

He offered his sincere sympathies to Ms Ridgard’s mother, and her partner, Mark, on the very tragic circumstances of her daughter’s death.

“I know your family has been visited with a lot of tragedy subsequently,” he said referring to the death of Gavin Ridgard and his sister, Patricia, in the same house last month.