2nd Woman Charged in Teen's Near-Fatal Heroin Overdose

The second woman wanted in connection with the near-fatal overdose of a 15-year-old Sarasota boy is now in custody.

According to the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office, Courtney Johnson, 27, turned herself in Thursday evening. She now faces child abuse with great bodily harm charges and is currently being held in lieu of $50,000 bond at the Sarasota County Jail.

The boy’s mother, Cynthia Hyer, 47, was charged in connection with the case earlier in the week.

The incident that led to the arrest took place July 3 when first responders were called to Hyer’s home on Mauna Loa Boulevard. There they found the teen suffering from an overdose. While he did recover, authorities began to look into the circumstances surrounding the overdose.

See Also:

• Man Ran ‘Flop House,’ Deputies Say
• Rash of Heroin Overdoses Reported in Sarasota

It was learned that Hyer was aware of her son’s drug use. She told deputies her home was a “flop house” where people came to use drugs. Johnson was one of those people, an arrest report stated.

Johnson’s own arrest was based on her admission to deputies that she injected the teen with heroin, the arrest report stated. She also told deputies the teen accompanied her and another woman to purchase heroin in Bradenton on several occasions, the report added.

The third woman in the case has not yet been arrested.

Booking photo courtesy of the Sarasota County Sheriff’s Office