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By JENNIFER LEARN; Times Leader Hazleton Bureau
Sunday, October 22, 1995 Page: 3
HAZLETON — Three pathologists say huffing — not rat poisoning —
contributed to Suzanne Passante’s death. But her mother questions whether they
based their conclusions on the right blood.
Passante, 31, manager of Senape’s Tavern on North Vine Street, died Jan. 2
on a sofa at the Noble Street home she shared with two men.
Luzerne County Coroner George Hudock ruled the death a cocaine overdose.
A few months later, Allentown pathologist John J. Shane, who was hired by
Passante’s mother, said “beyond all doubt” Passante did not die from ingesting
too much cocaine.
Shane said Passante’s bleeding kidney and other evidence “strongly
suggests” she was poisoned, possibly by the compound warfarin, or a family of
poisons similar to rat poison.
Hudock agreed to review his original ruling. He had the blood retested and
hired independent pathologists.
According to reports released by the coroner’s office last week, all three
pathologists agreed that a solvent called trichloroethylene (TCE) found in the
retested blood, combined with cocaine, caused Passante’s death.
The pathologists ruled out warfarin because they said reports showed none
was detected in the blood.
TCE is found in typewriter correction fluid, insecticides, lacquers, paint
removers, glues and other common household products, pathologists say.
“People for years have attempted to `get high’ by inhaling or huffing TCE,
and it is one of many solvents that can be used to prepare cocaine freebase,”
wrote Jack W. Snyder, one of the independent pathologists. Freebasing is the
practice of heating cocaine and inhale its vapors.
Snyder said he was not authorized to say if police found evidence that
Passante freebased cocaine. Police have also declined to describe what they
found at the death scene.
Mother has doubts
Margaret Petruzzi, Passante’s mother, acknowledged her daughter used
cocaine but said she would not “huff,” a practice of inhaling chemical
products for a high.
Snyder said he believes the solvent made Passante’s heart more sensitive to
the effects of adrenaline and cocaine.
But Petruzzi questioned all the conclusions of the pathologists, and said
she has evidence the blood tested by the pathologists was not her daughter’s.
She noted that a report showing traces of warfarin in Passante’s blood was
issued July 14 by Lab Corp., Burlington, N.C., which did the original testing
on her daughter’s blood.
But the lab wrote a corrected report the next day. She said the earlier
document showed Passante had 0.4 micrograms per milliliter of warfarin in her
blood. The amended report said no warfarin was found.
Passante also said she was once told all her daughter’s leftover blood was
destroyed, but was later told some existed for retesting.
She said she called Lab Corp. earlier this year to see if the lab had kept
any blood from her daughter. She said an assistant supervisor told her
Passante’s leftover blood was destroyed Jan. 30.
Hudock has said the lab had samples of Passante’s blood as late as this
summer. He also said he based his affirmation of the cause of death on tests
of leftover blood.
Petruzzi also said Lab Corp. has told her it will no longer give her
information about the case. So, she said she cannot get the name of the
assistant supervisor to whom she spoke.
“We’re certainly looking at it,” said Jim Senape, Petruzzi’s lawyer. “If
they didn’t have her blood, which we don’t know for a fact, then whose blood
was tested?”
Lab Corp. spokesman Bill Booker said he cannot speak about Passante’s case
because of confidentiality agreements his company makes with all clients. But
he did say 0.4 micrograms per milliliter of warfarin could be found in
anybody’s body.
“People walk around with all kinds of chemicals in their body,” Booker
said. Some come from pesticides in food and others from chemicals in drinking
water, he said.
But Shane, who said he still sticks by his original report, said nobody
should have warfarin in his body — unless they take it in prescribed
medication. Petruzzi said her daughter did not take any such medication.
No absolute ruling
While Snyder said he is confident in his report reviewing the death, he
added he could not give an absolute ruling because he has no information about
Passante’s brain, which could have bled from either cocaine or Warfarin.
Snyder said he consulted with at least a dozen other pathologists before
issuing his decision.
“I think this case has been investigated exceptionally well,” Snyder said.
The other two pathologists who worked on the case were Gary W. Ross of
Scranton and Walter S. Hyrnkiw of Wyoming. Hudock said another pathologist
helped reinvestigate the case but Hudock did not name him or release a report
from him.
Senape said the independent pathologists are not so independent.
“They read what somebody else said about the case” first, and knew they
would be paid for their review by the coroner’s office, Senape said.
Hudock was not available for comment.
Margaret Petruzzi