Man Sentenced For Role In Burlington County Teen's Fatal Overdose

A Burlington County man who admitted selling drugs that lead a teenage girl to fatally overdose has been sentenced to eight years in New Jersey state prison, Burlington County Prosecutor Scott Coffina announced.

Austin F. Cooper, 22, of Willingboro, previously pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree strict liability for drug-induced death. He must serve 85 percent of his sentence before becoming eligible for parole.

Cooper admitted to delivering 10 bags of heroin to 15-year-old Madison McDonald at her home in Evesham Township, Coffina said. Her father found unresponsive but alive after she overdosed on Dec. 26, 2017.

She was transported to Virtua Marlton Hospital before being flown to Children's Hospital of Philadelphia. She was pronounced dead at CHOP on Dec. 28.

During a pretrial detention hearing, Burlington County Assistant Prosecutor Jeremy Lackey said investigators discovered a message from Cooper that read"I want to get a girl addicted to heroin," the Courier Post reports. He said they found the message during a warrant search of Cooper's cell phone and computer. He claimed Cooper then bragged following her death.

“We sadly have grown accustomed to drug overdoses taking the lives of young people, from all walks of life,” Coffina said. “We rarely, however, see someone as young as 15 die this way, which only deepens the tragedy of Madison’s loss. I would like to express our admiration for Madison’s father, Stephen, for his courage in fighting through unfathomable grief to stand up for his daughter in court today and throughout the entirety of this case. We wish for healing for all of Madison’s family and friends.

“I’d also like to acknowledge the Evesham Township Police Department for their diligent pursuit of this challenging investigation that enabled us to substantiate the enhanced charge for a DrugInduced Death against this defendant whose conduct, as Judge Haines said during the sentencing hearing, ‘demonstrated a shocking indifference to human life.’”