A Hempfield woman awaiting trial on charges she bought drugs used in the fatal overdose of a Greensburg man in January will be allowed to go home and avoid giving birth while in jail.
Westmoreland County Common Pleas Court Judge Meagan Bilik-DeFazio on Monday agreed to reduce the $75,000 bond that held Hollie Ann Schreiber in jail. A previous request for her bond to be reduced was rejected in April.
Schreiber said she didn’t learn she was pregnant until last month. The baby is due at the end of August.
“This is a miracle to my life, it’s something I’ve always wanted. I know with the trial and all I’ll probably go back to jail, but I just want to spend a little time with my child,” Schreiber said.
Schreiber, 39, along with two men, were charged with drug delivery resulting in death in connection with the Jan. 14 overdose of Christopher Holleran, 28, of Greensburg. Holleran was found dead in an Culbertson Avenue apartment he shared with his girlfriend and infant child.
Francesco Ziegler, 28, of Irwin, and Andrew C. Hohn, 33, of the Fort Allen area of Hempfield, are also awaiting trial in connection with Holleran’s death. Police said Ziegler gave Holleran information used to contact Hohn and Schreiber, who provided him the drugs, police said. Hohn and Schreiber were charged based on allegations they purchased the heroin given to Holleran.
Defense attorney Patricia Elliott-Rentler said Schreiber had no prior criminal history until two years ago and blamed her association with drugs on her husband, who was not implicated in Holleran’s death. Elliott-Rentler said Schreiber’s release will allow for better medical care for her unborn child and offer a chance to bond with the baby.
Assistant District Attorney Jim Lazar opposed the reduced bond.
“I’m not unsympathetic, but based on what I believe they are putting the child at a greater risk by letting Ms. Schreiber out rather than having the baby cared for by her parents,” Lazar said. “There’s more of a reason for her to be held so we can protect this child.”
In allowing Schreiber’s release on bond, the judge said she will be restricted to her parents’ home, where she cannot have visitors and is subject to random drug tests.
Schreiber’s trial, originally scheduled to begin in August, will be delayed until at least October, the judge said.
