Judge sentences Riverside teen to seven years in fatal drug case

A Platte County teen who sold an imitation illegal drug that killed a 15-year-old boy was sentenced Wednesday to seven years in prison.

Krista E. Meeks, 17, of Riverside pleaded guilty Wednesday to first-degree involuntary manslaughter, distributing an imitation controlled substance, possession of marijuana and possession of drug paraphernalia, prosecutors said.

On Oct. 3, 2013, Meeks sold a fake form of LSD to Ethan Rickman, who was a 14-year-old freshman at Park Hill High School, and another 14-year-old student.

The following day, emergency responders found Ethan unconscious in a residence in the 4900 block of Northwest Fisk Avenue in Parkville. He was taken to Children’s Mercy Hospital, where he was pronounced dead, said Platte County Prosecutor Eric Zahnd.

Meeks told investigators that she refused to take the drug because its effects were so harsh and violent, and she knew others had died from taking it, Zahnd said. Meeks felt she had no obligation to warn Ethan and another young buyer about the drug’s dangers because, as she told investigators, “If they are going to buy it, they should know what they are taking.”

The fake LSD had been manufactured at a home in Kansas City, Kan., Zahnd said. Police later seized more than 1,800 units of it. Tests on samples show it was the same chemical compound that killed Ethan.

Another teenager, Jamell Montgomery, 18, of Kansas City, also was charged with distributing an imitation controlled substance. He connected the boys with Meeks so they could buy the drug. Montgomery was sentenced May 5 to four years in prison. That sentence will be suspended if Montgomery completes five years’ probation after serving 120 days in the Platte County jail, Zahnd said.

This story was originally published May 14, 2014 at 4:58 PM with the headline "Judge sentences Riverside teen to seven years in fatal drug case."