Southwest Washington police sergeant died of on-the-job fentanyl overdose, medical examiner says

The death of a police sergeant working in Battle Ground, Washington, in August was caused by a drug overdose in his office, likely from intentional use, according to new findings from the Clark County Medical Examiner’s Office.

Findings of a toxicology performed on Sgt. Richard Kelly, 54, found he had fentanyl and methamphetamine in his system when he was found unconscious at the Battle Ground Police Department on Aug. 10.

A medical examiner discerned that Kelly’s death was likely caused by “intentional” drug use. Officials notified Kelly’s family of the findings earlier this month, the police department said in a statement.

“Substance abuse is a serious problem that often goes unsuspected and undetected,” Chief Mike Fort said in a prepared statement.

Kelly’s death came hours after a local drug seizure, according to records obtained by OPB. A Battle Ground police officer that morning found an unoccupied vehicle with guns and narcotics sitting in plain sight. After the seizure, the officer turned the guns and narcotics over to Kelly.

“The evidence seized in this case was processed and listed for ‘destruction’ by Sergeant Kelly,” the officer wrote in his report.

Later that day, Kelly was alone in his office for roughly two hours before another Battle Ground officer discovered the sergeant standing and bent over his desk. The officer said Kelly’s breathing was labored.

A small pile of white powder — later confirmed to be fentanyl — rested bare on a notepad on Kelly’s desk. Investigators noted an “extended line” of powder on the desk and found a straw of rolled-up white paper that was “consistent with what would be used to snort or inhale narcotics.” There was fresh vomit near the computer keyboard, they noted.

The Vancouver Police Department, or VPD, located about 18 miles south of Battle Ground, handled the investigation.

Investigators noted a nearby bottle of antacid had residual powder near the lid.

“This would suggest that this bottle was opened while the white powdery substance on the desk was being manipulated in some manner,” Vancouver Detective Dustin Goudschaal wrote in a report.

Seized fentanyl ‘chemically consistent’ with fentanyl on Kelly’s desk, investigators say

Investigators said they couldn’t directly link the fentanyl seized earlier in the day with the fentanyl on Kelly’s desk. They can’t be “matched” but are “chemically consistent with each other,” they told OPB.

When investigators looked at the precinct’s evidence lockers, they found what had been described as seized earlier that day. Inside the lockers were two firearms, packages of fentanyl and methamphetamines, and a set of scales.

Video surveillance footage reviewed by investigators showed Kelly making some questionable decisions while processing the firearms and guns, but investigators said they found nothing definitive. At one point in the footage, investigators wrote, Kelly is seen taking an envelope out of the room but not bringing it back. At another point, Kelly changed a glove on one of his hands and looked directly at the camera.

“At no other point during the process did Kelly look at the camera,” investigators wrote. Other times, investigators said, it was “difficult to determine exactly what actions Kelly was taking as his back blocks some of the view.”

Investigators said they couldn’t find any proof that evidence had been tampered, nor could they say whether the fentanyl on Kelly’s desk came from inside or outside the precinct.

“VPD did not have any leads to follow in regards to this,” an investigator told OPB. “No person came forward with information about where Sgt. Kelly may have been sourcing his narcotics.”

Still, Battle Ground police said Kelly’s death led to an audit of its policies for evidence handling.

Kelly joined the Battle Ground Police Department in 2005. He was promoted to sergeant in 2019, according to the city’s Facebook page.