By Shereen Siewert | Wausau Pilot & Review
A Wausau man facing homicide charges is now in custody, more than three years after he allegedly provided a fatal dose of drugs to a man and left the premises before help could arrive.
Otha C. Franklin, 45, was arrested March 4, the same day he was charged with first-degree reckless homicide, manufacturing or delivering heroin, bail jumping and delivery of designer drugs. Court records show he was free on bond ordered in four felony cases involving charges of burglary, possession of a firearm after a felony conviction and bail jumping at the time he allegedly provided drugs to the victim in a Scott Street apartment.
According to court documents, police were called in the early morning hours of July 6, 2020 to the Landmark Apartments in downtown Wausau for a report of a man who was unresponsive. A woman inside the apartment, later identified as Summer Marshall, told police she and the alleged victim had been snorting pills with Franklin for hours on the previous night. At some point the man started to have a seizure, Marshall said, and when she told Franklin an ambulance might be necessary he allegedly said the seizure was likely because there was heroin in the Ecstasy they were snorting – and that the man likely needed some rest. No ambulance was called at that time.
Marshall then fell asleep. When she woke, she allegedly discovered the victim unresponsive, but breathing.
Marshall then allegedly said when she and Franklin discovered the man did not have a pulse she asked Franklin to help her move the man to the floor to do CPR, but Franklin refused, taking the remaining drugs and leaving the apartment, according to a police report.
Autopsy results showed positive tests for morphine, fentanyl, heroin, cocaine, methamphetamine and other drugs including eutylone, which is frequently referred to as “bath salts.” The cause of death was multiple drug toxicity, according to the medical examiner’s report.
An arrest warrant was issued for Franklin on July 10, 2020. The victim’s brother told Wausau Pilot & Review he and his family has been agonizing for years waiting for justice for their loved one. Wausau Pilot & Review is withholding the name of the victim to protect the family’s privacy.
On Thursday, Franklin made his initial appearance in Marathon County Circuit Court to face the new charges and all four prior open cases. Circuit Judge Greg Strasser ordered him held on a $100,000 cash bond, with a preliminary hearing set for March 18.
Marshall has not been charged in connection with the man’s death but is facing unrelated charges in Marathon County.
You are advised that a charge is merely an accusation and that a defendant is presumed innocent until and unless proven guilty.
