Indicted on a capital murder charge for his role in the drug-overdose death of 40-year-old Jeremy Kocorowski of Bunnell in March 2024, Justin Maddox, 32, of Palm Coast, was sentenced today to 16 years in prison in a plea deal that reduced the charge to manslaughter.
“Addiction is a disease,” the victim’s mother told the court in a statement she read after the sentencing. “But exploiting someone who’s struggling is not. it is predatory. It is lethal. And in this case, it was murder.”
The Flagler County Sheriff’s Office investigates every drug-overdose death as a homicide until that’s ruled out. Sheriff’s detective Adam Gossett was the lead investigator. The case was prosecuted by Assistant State Attorney Jason Lewis.
Kocorowski, just then going through a breakup, had just started working at Builders First Choice in Bunnell. It was there that Maddox sold him drugs on several occasions–Oxycodone primarily, fentanyl on occasion, in cash or through CashApp, the investigation determined. Kocorowski had told Maddox that he would help him find a job at the same workplace.
Kocorowski had been staying with a friend after his breakup. She last saw him the evening of March 27, 2024 around 7 p.m., when he was still awake. She went to sleep. He joined her later. She remembered him leaving the bedroom at 3 a.m. When the alarm went off at 4, he was not in bed. She found him on the kitchen floor, unresponsive, called 911 and started CPR. Kocorowski had died.
Maddox was also sentenced to a year and a day on what had started as three drug charges, including a first-degree felony charge of trafficking fentanyl. Two lesser charges were dropped, and the trafficking charge was reduced to possession with intent to sell.
Maddox went from potentially facing capital punishment or life in prison to a 16-year prison sentence that may be shortened roughly to 12.5 years when his 490 days of credit for time served at the county jail are applied, and “gain time,” or time off for good behavior, is applied to the rest of the sentence. He is eligible for up to 15 percent of his prison sentence as gain time, which does not apply to the time he served at the county jail.
“Every day since that day has been a living nightmare,” Kocorowski’s mother told the court. “Jeremy was a father, a son, a friend, a man who was trying to rebuild his life after some tough times. He had just started a new job. He was showing up, trying, pushing forward. He had a future, and someone took that from him. What made this pain even worse is knowing that the person responsible admitted to meeting Jeremy at his job somewhere together, admitted to selling him fentanyl on several occasions. This wasn’t an accident. This was a choice, a choice that took my son’s life.”
She described the ripple effect of her son’s death in the family, the empty holidays, the bittersweet milestones Jeremy’s daughter is marking without him.
“His absence echoes through every part of our lives,” Jeremy’s mother said. “I will never see my son get old. I will never get another phone call, another hug, another I love you Mom, and I have to live with that for the rest of my life. I am here to say my son’s name out loud to make sure that everyone in this courtroom understands Jeremy mattered. He was loved, is still loved, and his life was worth more than how it ended.”
JimboXYZ says
“Addiction is a disease,” the victim’s mother told the court in a statement she read after the sentencing. “But exploiting someone who’s struggling is not. it is predatory. It is lethal. And in this case, it was murder.”
Hard to read something like that and think that the OD was self administered & inflicted. Don’t get me wrong I don’t condone the entire process of illegal drugs. I take it the Fentanyl was what killed the relative victim ? Just me, you’d think the dealers would be pricing their Fentanyl to include enough of the Narcan as the OD antidote with the Fentanyl they sell as at least an relative insurance policy. Not that Narcan isn’t OTC these days ? Big Pharma doesn’t even do that, provide an OD backup plan for the abuser ? Hard to paint a relative hard times victim as a recovering addict that gets a new job & then seeks out the toxic addiction & habit with their first paycheck(s) of getting back on their feet ? Sounds like these 2 had quite the relationship when there’s talk of helping another into a job at the same Bunnell employer ?
I get what the State laws & law enforcement are going to pursue for charges, because those are the statutes. The duality of the game of illegal drugs. We had a POTUS that allowed the drugs cross the border in the 1st place for border crisis. Is this made in the USA or China/Mexico Fentanyl or whatever the drug was ? The same POTUS who’s son is a recovering drug addict. And then we have to sit thru an interview of f-bombs for an addict that was pardoned for stealing $ 1.4 million in unpaid taxes that won’t ever spend a day in a prison cell. Imagine that ? Just remember they found cocaine in the White House, probably the 1st time ever (that it was actually reported) ? And nobody could figure out where that came from or whose it was ? But for anyone else in the USA, this is a capital murder reduced to a plead manslaughter ? Please, someone make any of it make sense any more ? I wouldn’t doubt illegal drugs hasn’t corrupted our Governments even. Some of these folks are just self inflicted victims of their own making. And then none of them would be victims, just the winners & losers of a risks involved for doing business in the controlled substance & illegal drug trade for profit ?
Disgusted in Flagler County says
My sincere condolences ma’am. Drugs are bad. I hate them. May your son Rest In Eternal Peace 🙏🏻
Juli says
From my momma heart to yours, I am so sorry. My heart hurts deeply for you on the loss of your precious son. I lost a brother to heroin a very long time ago and it was so traumatizing. I found him and I was only 10 years old, he was 19. He was getting his life together and all it took was one cruel drug dealer to prey on his weakness. Yes, I blame the dealers as they prey on the vulnerable! I hope this guy ends up getting way more than he deserves because his punishment doesn’t compare to yours! There is no time that can ever take away the pain that you and your loved ones have endured and you now carry a lifetime sentence of grief. I also have a son with a disease of addiction and all I can do is live with HOPE and PRAYER! I despise every human that feeds his weakness, knowing that he has a disease. I felt every word that you wrote because your son Jeremy mattered! Praying for you all with empathy, compassion and understanding.
Case says
I understand the mothers pain. However, her son was an addict before he even moved to Flagler County from Wisconsin. To blame Maddox for all is problems is insane. Jeremy was a user and dealer like most. How many people did he sell fentanyl to? He had arrest after arrest only to be given courtesy and breaks because his late brother whom had his own addictions and struggles was a Deputy that the Sheriffs department allowed to quietly disappear because of his mishaps so as not to bring attention to the Department. Unbelievable how people deflect.