Police on Friday March 17th were exploring the deaths of two Ohio residents. Brain Halye, 36, who was a Spirit Airlines pilot and his wife Courtney, 34, were discovered by their four children in their suburban Ohio home. The coroner on the case said that the initial causes of death for each resident appears to be in line with a drug overdose. The two of them were found in their home the morning of the 16th. The couple lived in Centerville, Ohio, which is south of Dayton, per police.
The couple’s children (one boy and three girls) called 911 in a panic after their parents failed to wake them up for school. In the 911 call, you can hear the children crying in the background while the one child told the dispatcher that “they were very cold”. The son went on to say that the children found their parents in bed and that they were not breathing. His sisters would later go on to describe that their father’s face as “pale and there was black lines all over his face.”
In reaching out to Spirit Airlines, Spirit reported that Halye was indeed a pilot with them and that his last flight with them on March 10th. Spirit went on to say that “Captain Halye served at the airline for just over nine years,”. They also went on to say that Spirit tests their employees for drugs and alcohol on a random basis and that anyone who has a test come back positive is fired immediately.
The authorities are still looking into the deaths, but they did say that the deaths did appear to be from drug use. They later went on to show that that the drugs in question were consistent with heroin or fentanyl use. No one will know for sure until a toxicology report come back and that could take four to six weeks. The Centerville police noted that the deaths did in fact seem to be drug related because drugs and paraphernalia was discovered on the scene. These kinds of deaths are on the rise and might have even reached record highs according to the director for the Coroner’s Office in Montgomery County.
The mother of Courtney Halye, Nancy Casey, stated that her daughter did have some health problems and that she suffered from Type 1 diabetes while also suffering from depression. Nancy would go on to state that her daughter did take medication to combat her issues. Courtney’s mom does not believe that drugs were a constant issue for couple. She would later go on to describe her daughter as someone who was well-liked and stated that she was usually “a light in the room.”.
Nancy went on to say that “I don’t know if they decided they were going to party, or went and they got a hold of this bad stuff going around town,”. Nancy Casey went on to state that her daughter should not be considered as an “addict” or “low-life.”.
Fatal overdoses cause by heroin has been on a steady rise since 2010. In the year 2010 there were 3,038 heroin related deaths in the United States, per the Center for Disease Control and Prevention. That number skyrocketed from 3,038, to a staggering 8,260 in 2013. In 2015 the trend continued and per reports the number hit a record high of 12,989. The heroin epidemic is a real thing and communities are feeling the burden.
It’s unfortunate to see this happen in our state but unfortunately it has been a rising trend. If you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, don’t hesitate to call Arrow Passage Recovery. We’re here 24/7 to answer the phone. 
