The pair face murder charges in the case. It’s the fifth fentanyl-related case that A-P-D has filed first-degree murder charges over the last two years.
Between January and April of this year more than 80 overdoses have been reported in Taylor County.
Family members who have lost a loved one are working to draw attention to the issue, and hoping they can help reduce overdoses.
Last weekend the non-profit Jerrin’s Hope hosted their first Annual Octane Overdose Car Show and Festival to raise money for their organization.
Organizers collaborated with WEGO Tour and Keepers Car Club of West Texas to plan the event at the Abilene Convention Center. Jerrin Hernandez passed away at age 16 from an accidental fentanyl overdose.
The next year his family created Jerrin’s Hope. His mom Krystal Lewis says it was easy to decide what type of event they wanted to host.
“My son Jerrin Hernandez, um, he loves, absolutely loves vehicles. Cars were his definite love. And so we decided to do this because this was his love,” said Lewis.
The response from people who wanted to be part of the car show surprised Lewis.
“We got cars here that just, kind of blew everything out of the water, like stuff that you see on TV. It's crazy, haha, so, um, we, kind of, have cars from all throughout the area. I mean everything from San Antonio to Corpus to even some that are out of state, like it is insane,” said Lewis.
Unique cars were featured at the event, which also included a variety of motorcycles and bikes. Ronnie Sanders, who participated in the show with his 2007 Harley Davidson Heritage Softail, says that once he and his family heard about the cause, they knew they had to participate.
“So my daughter works at Serenity House. So when we found out what the cause was for, that was like, hey, we got to do this because, um, we've been affected by a lot of stuff like that, here's so many, especially young kids that, um, they have no outlet, they have no one to talk to. And so getting that message out there is very very important, yeah, very, very important to us,” said Sanders.
Robert S. Torres Junior provided some vintage music ambience, through a speaker sitting next to his fully customized 1949 Chevy Fleetline lowrider. Torres says he hopes events like this can raise awareness of the dangers and ultimately help young people make the choice to stay away from drugs.
“A lot of people, a lot of kids, young kids need to stay away from drugs. They need to understand that that's not the, that's not the way to go, that you gotta depend on. Make sure what you think about yourself and before you move forward to stay away from it,” said Torres.
Fentanyl has heightened the danger that people face when they experiment with drugs.
According to the Abilene-Taylor County Public Health District, in 2024 Taylor County reported 217 overdoses, which resulted in ten fatalities. Seven of those deaths involved fentanyl.
To combat this, in 2024 U.S. Attorney's Office for the Northern District of Texas under then - U-S Attorney Leigha Simonton announced “Operation Top-Shelf” - which was the large scale drug bust local Abilene and Taylor County police executed with support from the Federal Bureau of Investigation and other organizations. (https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndtx/pr/17-charged-abilene-drug-bust)
Although Abilene has seen a decrease the overdose rate since that operation, illegal drugs remain a public health concern.
Michael Prado, co-founder of West Texas Harm Reduction, manned a booth offering free narcan at the Octane Overdose event. Narcan, or Naloxone, can rapidly reverse an opioid overdose. Prado says his organization began as a simple effort to keep people alive.
“We're supporting Jerry's hope, cause it's gonna take a village to combat this. I don't. We need all the help we can get to save a generation, save our children, save our loved ones, our dads, our sisters, our moms, our brothers, our uncles,” said Prado.
Prado and West Texas Harm Reduction have placed free narcan vending machines in multiple locations in Abilene and have started providing Narcan to organizations in other cities including Sweetwater, Big Spring, Midland, Odessa, and Ranger.
One of the Narcan vending machines is located outside of the Abilene Absolute Recovery Solutions office on Judge Ely.
That was the site of another gathering on Sunday to mark International Overdose Awareness Day, on the calendar August 31st.
Many community members, including April Barron-attended both events.
Barron hosted the Walk for Lives Abilene event in July which was part of the nationwide movement organized by United Against Fentanyl.
“You know we we had a walk for lives July 11th. Over 150 people came in Abilene, over 9,000 nationwide. And we got to be part of that,” said Barron.
April’s son, Matthew Flores, also passed away in 2024 due to fentanyl overdose.
In her address at Sunday’s event, April expressed her gratitude for the support system that she’s discovered in the community, and the way they can relate, and comfort and process their grief together.
“And I'm thankful to be here with you guys, your support. And like I said, you more like family than my whole family. And I'm sorry we're here all these certain these circumstances. I'm sorry our babies are here, but we're here for each other and we understand each other more than anybody else,” said Barron.
Abilene Absolute Recovery Solutions offers treatment for people trying to break a drug addiction, as well as group meetings and other support.
Clients find a safe space to tell their story and the story of their lost loved ones.
And that’s what happened Sunday night, when friends and family who paused to remember those they’ve lost by writing on the side of the building and releasing balloons together as a community.
The fight against drug abuse and overdose deaths is far from over. But local organizations hope that by joining efforts and raising awareness of the danger they can reduce stigma around such conversations, and ultimately help to save lives.
More statewide info here:
https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndtx/pr/after-takedown-opioid-overdose-rates-fall-abilene
United States Attorney’s Office Northern District of Texas Release: https://www.justice.gov/usao-ndtx/pr/17-charged-abilene-drug-bust
Reported Overdose in Taylor County - Partner Update 2024 - Abilene Public Health: https://abilenetx.gov/DocumentCenter/View/33982/Overdose-Reporting-2024-PDF