An area man has been charged with manslaughter after an investigation by the 16th Judicial Drug Task Force and Sharp County Sheriff’s Office.
According to a release, authorities received a call from the White River Medical Center in Batesville.
They reported that LaShaun Terrell Starbuck of Cave City had brought 18-year-old Alyssa Hale to the emergency room. On arrival, Hale was deceased.
Starbucks told investigators the female had been dumped in front of his entryway at his residence on Melon Drive in Cave City early that morning by unknown persons.
After getting permission to look through Starbucks’ phone, that statement was quickly debunked, and a search of his residence proved he was lying regarding his involvement with Hale.
The 16th Judicial Drug Task Force was requested to assist due to the likelihood that Hale’s death involved drugs.
Authorities conducted follow-up interviews with individuals who were with Hale the night before she died.
All said she appeared normal when she was taken to Starbucks’ home.
The investigators obtained search warrants for Starbucks’ phone and social media apps.
Messages showed Starbuck was regularly involved in the sale and distribution of pills.
He admitted that he and Hale had taken pills the night before her death, and Starbuck’s drug test when being booked into jail was positive for fentanyl.
The state medical examiner listed fentanyl toxicity as Hale’s cause of death.
The affidavit states, “In the early morning hours of October 28, 2021, Alyssa Hale was given pills by Starbuck that she believed to be Percocet but were instead fentanyl made to look like Percocet.”
Starbuck has been charged in Sharp County Circuit Court with manslaughter, which is a class C felony.
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