Woman Sentenced to Probation in Overdose Death of Classmate

A southwest Missouri woman who was 17 when she sold prescription drugs to a classmate who died of an overdose has been sentenced to 120 days in jail and five years of probation.

The Springfield News-Leader reports that Alexandra Gonzalez, of Nixa, also was ordered Thursday to perform 300 hours of community service for selling Xanax to 18-year-old Austin Clark. He died in June 2016 after ingesting toxic amounts of the anti-anxiety drug as well as methadone.

Gonzalez’s attorney, Joseph Passanise, says his client had been racked with guilt and didn’t intend for Clark to die.

Clark’s parents say their son was battling a drug addiction but he had been clean for months. His father, Brett Clark, said it “feels like a part of my soul has been ripped out.”