- David Simon appeals for leniency in drug-related death case
- Plea to show compassion for 71-year-old defendant
- Prosecutors seek 10-year sentence, three others plead guilty
The Wire co-creator David Simon asked for leniency in the drug-related death of actor Michael K. Williams.
Williams, who played burglar Omar Little in the HBO crime thriller, died of an overdose at 54 in 2021.
Carlos Macci is one of four individuals accused of selling Williams the fatal heroin laced with fentanyl.
In April, Macci, 71, pled guilty to conspiracy to distribute narcotics. This month, he is anticipated to be sentenced.
In a three-page letter filed by Macci’s attorney on Thursday, Mr. Simon pleaded with the New York judge to show leniency because WilliamsDavid Simon, co-creator of The Wire, has pleaded for leniency in the sentencing of a man charged in the drug-related death of actor Michael K. Williams. “believed in redemption”
Mr. Simon stated, “No possible good can come from incarcerating a 71-year-old soul who is largely illiterate, has struggled with addiction for a lifetime, and has not engaged in street-level narcotics sales with ambitions of success or profit, but rather as someone caught up in the diaspora of addiction.”
“[Williams] fought fiercely for himself and for everyone, he encountered in Baltimore, Brooklyn, and elsewhere. He would defend Mr. Macci,” he added.
Since his incarceration in 2022, Macci has been in prison. Mr. Simon’s letter is part of Macci’s attorney’s demand for a 1.5-year sentence.
As the number of overdose deaths in the United States continues to rise, some prosecutors have charged both the dealers and the friends of victims who aided them obtain drugs. To discourage people from selling or sharing fentanyl, several states have enacted legislation authorizing prosecutors to charge overdoses as homicides.
Williams’ performance in The Wire, a series that aired from 2002 to 2008 and examined the Baltimore drug scene from the perspective of law enforcement as well as drug dealers and consumers, garnered widespread critical acclaim.
Prosecutors allege that on September 5, 2021, Macci and other members of a drug-trafficking organization sold Williams heroin tainted with fentanyl and continued to do so despite knowing that the actor had overdosed and died.
The probation officer of the court has recommended 10 years in prison.
The three other individuals charged with William’s death have also entered guilty pleas.
Mr. Simon, a former Baltimore police reporter, described his association with Williams and the actor’s addiction struggles in his letter.
Mr. Simon stated that Williams would hold himself solely accountable for what transpired.
“This attitude, combined with Michael’s publicly stated opposition to mass incarceration and the drug war,” he explained, “convinces me that he would want me to write this letter.”
