Woman found guilty in Fresno County's first fentanyl murder case

FRESNO, Calif. (KFSN) -- A drug dealer is now a convicted killer after a first-of-its-kind verdict in Fresno County on Wednesday.

Cassidy Gonzalez collapsed on the table as she was found guilty of second-degree murder.

Prosecutors say she knowingly sold Jade Dreith a deadly dose of fentanyl just hours before she died. They charged her with murder.

"The issue really is implied malice, determining what an individual knew at the time they acted," prosecutor Kendall Reynolds told Action News after the verdict.

Reynolds made his case for more than a week, calling dozens of witnesses.

The defense called just one. Their whole case lasted only 4 minutes and 41 seconds.

"This is a circumstantial evidence case for the most part with one major question: Did Cassidy Gonzalez commit a murder?" defense attorney Greg Gross asked during final arguments.

In the end, seven women and five men deliberated for two days.

They asked the judge three questions, including one just an hour before they reached the verdict.

The foreperson told the judge it was unanimous as Gonzalez's emotion pierced through the courtroom.

The same men and women who convicted her just moments earlier heard her cries as the judge read final instructions.

Gonzalez's attorney was left to console his client. She now faces up to life in prison.

"It tells them that if they're doing something, and they knowingly do it - In this case, sell fentanyl, sell counterfeit oxys, counterfeit M30s - We're willing to take that extra step and really hold them accountable," said Reynolds.

The case has been years in the making, coinciding with the county's fentanyl awareness campaign.

District Attorney Lisa Smittcamp spoke to Action News about the verdict.

"This is a testament to the fact that people in Fresno are listening. They're aware. They're becoming keenly aware," Smttcamp said.

"They want to protect themselves, their loved ones, their children, and they're now willing to sit on juries and say 'Yes, we agree.'"

Fresno prosecutors are already using the guilty verdict as a precedent for another fentanyl murder case.

Smittcamp tells Action News that the county's campaign is expanding from the dangers to the punishment.

"We're very familiar with the 'One Pill Can Kill,' but now we're really looking toward a campaign of 'You sell, then this will be your cell,'" explained Smittcamp.

Those billboards are expected to go up in the coming weeks.

Gonzalez is now scheduled to be sentenced on April 24. Her defense attorney says he will likely ask to delay it.

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