The death of a woman at a restaurant in rural Oxford County has sparked what could be a precedent-setting court case.
William Knapp has pleaded guilty to criminal negligence causing death and drug trafficking in connection with the death of Carolyn de Wit.
The 32-year-old de Wit died of a fentanyl overdose in January 2016, while working at a restaurant on Main Street in Norwich.
Knapp was arrested at the scene. He had provided de Wit with the fentanyl patch which she smoked, leading to her death.
Benjamin de Wit says he’s glad Knapp pleaded guilty in connection with his wife’s death, sparing their family the pain and uncertainty of a criminal trial.
“Our lives have been turned upside-down,” he says.
At the time of her death, Carolyn de Wit was a mother of three young children. Her husband says she lived for her family, cooking for them and finding joy in their lives.
“From the moment she got up until the moment she went to bed, they never left her mind,” he says.
While Carolyn de Wit was smoking the fentanyl that would kill her, Benjamin de Wit was dropping her kids off at his parents’ house. After getting a call from his wife’s boss telling him something bad had happened, he stayed at the house until police officers showed up with more information.
“It really brings you back to what’s truly important … and that’s just caring for one another and being there for one another,” he says.
Benjamin de Wit says he didn’t know a lot about opioids before his wife’s death. He says he had heard about fentanyl and knew it was supposed to be far stronger than morphine, but had no idea it was present in his community.
“Fentanyl kills,” he says.
“There are people dying, and they will continue to die if they don’t put an end to fentanyl.”
Two milligrams of fentanyl are enough to cause a fatal overdose in a 180-pound adult.
Benjamin de Witt says he hopes his wife’s death warns other drug users about the dangers of use, and redirects them to outreach workers and community supports.
“No matter how difficult life seems to get, there’s always a way forward,” he says.
Knapp will be back in court later this month for sentencing. The judge’s decision will likely be seen as a precedent under Ontario law, guiding future sentences for drug dealers convicted of trafficking fentanyl in cases leading to death.
The Woodstock courthouse played host to a similarly precedent-setting case last September, when pharmacist Yogesh Patel was sentenced to an 11-year prison term.
Patel had admitted to illegally obtaining thousands of fentanyl patches by creating records in his pharmacy’s database for fictitious customers.
With reporting by Natalie van Rooy
