Ex-Gonic woman with history of drug arrests gets 6-10 years in death resulting case

Vanessa Spear; inset Michael Issa (Spear photo/SCHOC; Issa photo/Courtesy)

DOVER - A former Gonic woman was sentenced to six to 12 years in state prison for supplying a Middleton man with a fatal dose of fentanyl and methamphetamine in July of 2022.
Vanessa Spear, 34, was indicted on the charge in May of 2024. According to the charging document, Spear on July 18, 2022 "did commit the crime of dispensing controlled drug fentanyl ... and methamphetamine to Michael Issa and subsequently Issa ingested said controlled drug resulting in his death," which occurred in Middleton.
During her plea and sentencing hearing on Monday the prosecution recommended she receive 7-14 years, but the judge ultimately imposed a 6-12 year sentence with the ability to petition for two years of the minimum sentence to be suspended for 10 years upon completion of substance use treatment at the prison.
Spear will also enter prison with 412 days of pretrial confinement credit, which means she could be released in less than three years.
As part of the plea deal three Class A felonies for trafficking meth were dismissed.
Spear also pleaded guilty to a Violation of Probation and received 365 days for that offense to be served concurrently with the death resulting case.
Issa, a father of four who enjoyed playing the guitar, listening to music and playing darts, died on July 18, 2022.
Spear, who has a history of drug arrests, made headlines when as a fugitive from justice she was found hiding in a dryer in a residence on Manatee Drive in Rochester in February of 2017.