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A senior district judge Thursday refused to lower the $250,000 bail for a Jeannette man facing 20 to 40 years in prison if he's convicted of providing a fatal dose of drugs to his brother.
Senior District Judge James Falcon rejected arguments from attorney Duke George, who described Markus A. McGowan, 29, as a person who wasn't on the radar of police.
McGowan is being held in the Westmoreland County Prison in connection with 22-year-old Mathew McGowan's Dec. 28 overdose death in Greensburg.
“This bond is not indicative of this person who's charged with a crime,” George argued.
But Assistant District Attorney Pete Flanigan pointed to the accusations police filed against McGowan, the most serious of which is drug delivery resulting in death, which can be prosecuted as a third-degree homicide.
“The safety of the community is also a paramount consideration,” Flanigan argued. “Mr. McGowan's distribution of … these deadly things into the community is something that the community does need protection from.”
Falcon ordered McGowan to stand trial on the drug-related charges after a preliminary hearing attended by about 20 people.
Greensburg Detective Sgt. John Swank testified that he responded to a reported drug overdose at an Eastmont Street apartment on Dec. 28 and found Mathew McGowan “unconscious and unresponsive on the floor.”
McGowan died at 7:22 p.m. at Excela Westmoreland Hospital.
Swank testified he was led to Markus McGowan by a roommate who told police he had sold his brother seven bags of purported heroin for $60 on Dec. 27. The bags were stamped “Hook Me Up.” Police later learned the bags contained not heroin but fentanyl, a more powerful synthetic opioid, Swank said.
The roommate told police she had returned from the hospital that day where she was treated after overdosing on the same drugs when she found McGowan unconscious, according to an affidavit. Markus McGowan admitted to selling his brother the drugs when Swank went to his home and notified him of the death.
“He began crying and was visibly upset,” Swank testified.
George asked Swank why he didn't immediately arrest McGowan.
“He said to me that he wanted to cooperate,” Swank testified. “Rather than arrest him that night, I chose to investigate further.”
Family members declined to comment following the hearing.
McGowan is the ninth person in Westmoreland County to be charged with drug delivery resulting in death since the charge was amended in 2011, eliminating the requirement for prosecutors to show intent.
Renatta Signorini is a Tribune-Review staff writer. Reach her at 724-837-5374 or rsignorini@tribweb.com.
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