Defendant pleads not guilty as trial begins in Jefferson County fentanyl death case

A trial session in the 252nd District Court in Jefferson County opened with prosecutors saying evidence will show that fentanyl delivered by the defendant, Harry Francis Lowenthal, caused the death of a man found at 1005 Houston Street in China, Texas, on April 15, 2023. Lowenthal pleaded not guilty while a jury was seated and sworn.

The prosecution told jurors it will present family members, first responders, an autopsy and cell‑phone records to show the chain of events. "The evidence in this case will show that on April fifteenth of 2023, fentanyl killed" the victim, prosecutor Coleman told jurors, and prosecutors said records place the defendant's phone in the area of the victim's home around the time of the death.

The prosecution's opening: why the state says it matters

Prosecutor Coleman opened by summarizing what the state expects jurors to hear: family members who found the victim, first responders who pronounced him, toxicology showing fentanyl in his system, and telecommunication records that place the defendant's phone near the scene. The indictment read at the start of the session charges Lowenthal with recklessly manufacturing or delivering a controlled substance (fentanyl) that resulted in a death, citing penalty group 1b and sections of the Texas Health and Safety Code recited in court.

Defense counsel's opening: reasonable doubt

Defense attorney Reynolds told jurors the case raises reasonable doubt about who supplied the drugs and whether the defendant caused the death. "There’s gonna be evidence out there that I believe will raise a reasonable doubt in your mind," Reynolds said in his opening.

Key witness accounts and on‑scene evidence

Emergency medical responder Justin McGraw (deputy and paramedic) testified that he responded to a call at about 6:15 p.m. on April 15, 2023, at 1005 Houston Street in China. He said the victim was unresponsive and in cardiac arrest when responders entered and that attempts at resuscitation were stopped after they observed signs consistent with prolonged downtime. "He had no spontaneous breathing," McGraw said when describing what he observed.

Officer Nathaniel Frazier of the county law enforcement testified he observed the deceased in the kitchen area, helped secure the scene and later saw drug‑related items in the victim's bedroom, including a Narcan casing and a pill bottle. Photographs from the scene (admitted as State's Exhibits 1–8) were published to the jury.

Household residents identified defendant and described phone call

Household residents Claude Gaspar and Christina Flores, who lived at the address, testified they knew the victim (identified in testimony as John Janice) and recognized the defendant in court and from a photo lineup. Gaspar said he overheard the victim say, "I'm supposed to go meet Harry," shortly before the victim left the house on April 15. Flores told jurors she heard the victim's phone ring, saw him leave walking down the street and later found him unresponsive; she and others attempted to revive him and administered Narcan before emergency services arrived.

Prior incidents and hospital records

Both Gaspar and Flores described prior substance use in the household and testified that they and Claude had been treated at Baptist Hospital after an overdose in late March 2023 after consuming drugs they said they had purchased from the same supplier. The court admitted hospital business records into evidence concerning that March hospitalization.

Telecommunications and location evidence

An AT&T records custodian testified that the company provided call detail records, text messages and location‑related data on a DVD admitted as State's Exhibit 14. The custodian confirmed the records were AT&T's business records for the account the subpoena targeted.

Detective Guadalupe Flores, who used CASTVIS (cellular analysis software used by law enforcement), showed an animation and screenshots (admitted as State's Exhibit 15) created from AT&T data that mapped a phone's activity on April 15, 2023. She testified the data "hit several towers in the area of China, then back to Beaumont," and that the mapping showed a phone traveling from Beaumont toward China on Highway 90 and then returning toward Beaumont during the time window relevant to the incident. Deputy Daniel Powell, who conducted follow‑up investigative work, corroborated that mapping and said vehicle registration checks returned a truck associated with the defendant with characters matching the PBJ sequence referenced in testimony.

Identification and evidence admitted

Witnesses testified that they identified a photo of the defendant during law‑enforcement lineups; those identification documents were admitted (State's Exhibits 11 and 13). The court admitted multiple crime‑scene photographs and other scene evidence, and overruled defense objections to the admission and presentation of the AT&T records and CASVIS animation after a foundation from the record custodian and a detective.

Autopsy, toxicology and scheduling

Investigators said they obtained an autopsy and laboratory reports indicating fentanyl in the victim's system; the pathologist who performed the autopsy was not available to testify that day. The court and counsel told the jury the pathologist is expected to testify when available; the court indicated that witness was scheduled to appear the following day at 1:00 p.m.

What the jury will consider next

Prosecutors say jurors will hear the medical examiner's findings, toxicology, witness testimony, and phone‑records mapping tying the defendant's phone to the general area of the fatality on April 15, 2023. The defense has signaled it will press gaps in the evidence and argue those gaps create reasonable doubt about whether Lowenthal furnished the fentanyl that caused the death.

Ending

Court recessed with the case to resume upon the pathologist's testimony; the judge told jurors and counsel the trial will reconvene the next day when the medical witness is expected to be available. No verdicts were reached during the session reported here.