Nora Barker

BUTLER TWP — Detectives said a Butler woman made unsolicited statements indicating her guilt during her transport Thursday to a preliminary hearing on a drug case linked to a man’s death.

Nora Barker, 60, appeared before District Judge Kevin O’Donnell on one count of drug delivery resulting in death related to the March 9 death of Jeremy Venturini.

During testimony, Det. Timothy Fennell said Barker made comments before the hearing in the back of the police cruiser. He said her comment was precluded by statements about being frustrated with protocols and comfort levels in Butler County Prison.

“She stated, ‘I did the crime. I’ll do the time. I just want to get out of there,’” Fennell said.

Barker is being held in the jail on $100,000 related to this case, as well as a cumulative $200,000 bond on two other pending criminal cases, both involving felony drug sale charges.

Fennell said they filed charges related to Venturini’s death, after uncovering text messages and surveillance video proving Barker made sales to him March 7 and March 8, just before Venturini’s body was found in his apartment at the CARE Center, a facility leased by Butler VA Healthcare to the Butler County Housing Authority.

Despite the statement, Barker’s public defender, Michael McFarland, later called for the case’s dismissal in a two-part argument. First, McFarland said there were multiple drugs found in Venturini’s system at the time of his death, based on the toxicology report.

“This case does require evidence that the drug delivered is the cause of death,” McFarland said.

During cross-examination, Fennell said fentanyl was cited in one of the reports as the specific drug causing death, but when McFarland asked how that conclusion was reached, Fennell could not provide an answer.

McFarland also argued that text messages between Barker and Venturini on March 8 talk about a second drug deal before the one with Barker.

“There is ambiguous information here that he died from drugs he received from another individual,” McFarland said.

Though Fennell said there were texts about a second deal, he refuted this claim that anyone else had sold to Venturini that day. He said there were not other texts or calls consistent with a second deal, and surveillance video did not show anyone else arriving at the center.

“There was no other individual,” Fennell said. “There was no other contact with the victim other than Nora Barker.”

Assistant District Attorney J.P. Kulzer said neither of McFarland’s arguments mattered at the stage of a preliminary hearing, which is designed only to determine whether this is enough evidence for a jury to deliberate during a trial, not to prove innocence or guilt.

“I think both of these issues he raises today are trial issues,” Kulzer said.

O’Donnell moved forward all charges against Barker to the Butler County Common Pleas Court, where she is expected to appear Aug. 23 for formal arraignment.