Mom of boy who died of OD avoids prison in plea deal

YOUNGSTOWN

The mother of a boy who died the day after Christmas last year after ingesting a massive amount of cocaine at her home was sentenced Tuesday to five years’ probation.

Judge R. Scott Krichbaum of Mahoning County Common Pleas Court handed down the sentence to Raenell Allen, 39, on a count of child endangering for the death of her son, Marcus Lee, 9.

Police said the drugs belonged to Allen’s boyfriend, Kevin Gamble, 38, who had a prior drug-trafficking conviction and was sentenced to 41⁄2 years in prison last week by Judge Krichbaum for his role in the case.

The sentence for Allen was recommended by prosecutors and defense attorneys. Prosecutors recommended the sentence because Allen agreed to cooperate with them.

Investigators still do not know how Marcus got access to the cocaine, but the amount was so massive that he became violently ill almost immediately. He died at Akron Children’s Hospital Boardman Campus.

The pair were indicted after tests done for the autopsy showed that Marcus died of a cocaine overdose. Authorities also said that Marcus was autistic and suffered from a disorder where he would stuff things in his mouth that were not food.

Assistant Prosecutor Dawn Cantalamessa told Judge Krichbaum the reason her office offered the plea to Allen was because she agreed to testify against Gamble if needed.

Marcus Lee Sr., the father of Marcus, told the judge he never got to say goodbye to his son and was mystified as to why there was a possibility she would not go to jail. Judge Krichbaum said he was not entirely happy about the situation.

Read more about thje case in Wednesday's Vindicator or on Vindy.com.