It was the coroner, in the bedroom, with the hydrocodone

Photo: Former Natrona County Chief Deputy Coroner Gary Hazen appears in court in Feb. after being charged with 10 felonies. Judge Michael Patchen set his bond at $2,500. (Tim Kupsick, Star-Tribune, trib.com)

Abuse of trust commands stiffer punishment
Meg Lanker

It's not often that I advocate for jail sentences for drug offenders, especially first-time drug offenders. I am an advocate of counseling and drug rehabilitation, either inpatient or outpatient. But in the case of former Natrona County Chief Deputy Coroner Gary Hazen, I'm willing to make an exception.

Hazen recently pleaded guilty to possession of hydrocodone and methadone in a Casper court after striking a plea bargain brokered by Special Prosecutor Scott Homar, leading to a suspended prison sentence of four to six years and 10 years of supervised probation - a bargain for sure, considering Hazen faced a maximum of 51 years in prison if convicted on all charges. He is currently free on $2,500 bond awaiting sentencing, even though he was originally charged with 10 felonies.

According to the Casper Star-Tribune, the drugs the Wyoming Division of Criminal Investigation (DCI) confiscated from a hidden room under the stairs of Hazen's home were:

1. 399 grams of codeine: medical use - 15 to 60 milligrams every three to six hours as needed for pain
2. 32 grams of diazepam (Valium): medical use - 2 to 10 milligrams three to four times daily as needed for anxiety
3. 134 grams of oxycodone: medical use - 5-15 milligrams every 4-6 hours as needed for pain
4. 65 grams of propoxyphene (Darvon): medical use - 65-100 milligrams, depending on form of drug, every 4 hours as needed for pain
5. 9 grams of chlordiazepoxide (Novapam/Librium): medical use - 5 to 25 milligrams three or four times daily as needed for anxiety
6. 350 grams of liquid morphine: medical use - 5 to 30 milligrams every 4 hours as needed for pain
7. 10 grams of methadone: medical use - 5 to 20 milligrams every four to eight hours as needed for pain

All are powerful, highly addictive drugs and none are available without the strictest of conditions and medical supervision. The amount of narcotics and sedatives Hazen possessed were more than enough to take down an invading zombie horde and no doctor would prescribe this amount of drugs in these quantities without facing criminal charges.

Hazen had no legal prescriptions for any of these substances, nor any explanation for his possession of these drugs. He admitted to stealing the drugs from the homes of the deceased while acting in his official capacity as chief deputy coroner at death scenes. According to the Tribune, he also allegedly took pornography and cash, but was not charged with anything related to those items.

Hazen was a police officer in Casper from 1978 to 1998 and a campus supervisor for the Natrona County School District from 1998 to 2002. He served as chief deputy coroner from 2002 until he was fired last December. This means Hazen worked the city of Casper in some official capacity and with the public's trust for 30 years.

Wednesday, the Tribune's editorial board wrote that Judge Peter Arnold should reject Hazen's plea agreement. I agree. Hazen was not a hapless college kid caught with a few joints. He was a public official who admitted to stealing from the homes of the recently deceased to feed his own addiction time and time again.

Drug addicts will do despicable, desperate things in order to achieve the next high. But rarely is such a gross abuse of public trust brought to light. Hazen was entrusted to perform his job by the public and failed. Indeed, eight other charges filed were dismissed with the deal, including two counts of failing to account for prescription drugs received by virtue of his office.

By virtue of his office, Hazen is held to a higher public standard. By virtue of his office, both as chief deputy coroner and as a former police office, Hazen knew exactly what he was doing and the consequences of abusing the drugs he spirited away from death scenes for his personal use. And, by virtue of his office, Hazen should not get any special breaks.

This may not be the case - Special Prosecutor Scott Homar said, "I looked at Mr. Hazen's case just as I would look at any other case that was similarly situated in order to determine what I thought was a fair and equitable plea agreement."

But that comment begs the question - what drug offenders do deserve jail time? I highly doubt the prosecution would give the same deal to a meth addict. The key words are "similarly situated case."

Prescription drug addiction is a classier, more sociably acceptable form of drug abuse. A doctor prescribes hydrocodone to a patient, the patient takes the slip(s) to a pharmacist (or three), pays for the drug and repeats the cycle. The addict smokes meth at home, meets the dealer in shadowy location, pays for the drug with welfare and repeats the cycle, so says the stereotype.

The public believes those who work in government should be held to a higher standard - after all, these are the people who are supposed to keep order, uphold the law and maintain public safety. Hazen violated all these expectations and tarnished the reputation of the coroner's office and the police department. The damage done goes beyond himself and cannot be quantified. This alone deserves a higher standard of punishment.

Any punishment must also include rehabilitation for a rather insidious addiction. I suggest the Wyoming Department of Corrections Intensive Treatment Unit (ITU) at the Wyoming State Penitentiary, which was established, according to the Department of Corrections, "to provide an opportunity for behavioral change to inmates whose lives and criminal activity are characterized by the use of substances."

Hazen's behavior was certainly characterized by his use of substances and his long service to the city of Casper is marred by a rather inglorious end. I am not advocating for a 51-year prison term. However, I am advocating for intensive treatment while incarcerated, and then a term of probation. How much of a chance does Hazen have of successfully completing probation without treatment?

I join the Tribune in imploring Judge Arnold to seriously consider the ramifications of accepting this sugar-coated plea bargain. The costs far outweigh any "bargain." This deal reinforces the idea that public officials get favorable treatment and that possession of prescription drugs is not as serious as possession of any other drug.

I argue that Hazen's actions constituted opportunistic grave-robbing and should be treated as such - no special deals. The virtual pharmacy hidden under his stairs represents a pattern of repeated criminal acts over a period of time, not petty drug possession, and must be treated as nothing less.

By virtue of his office, Hazen's brazen behavior commands nothing less.

Meg Lanker is the editor of The Underground and can be contacted at meglanker@gmail.com

(All dosage information taken from the Physician's Desk Reference (PDR) Consumer Drug Information database)