Whatcom woman accused of manslaughter for role in 2020 overdose death arrested again

A Ferndale woman facing manslaughter charges for her alleged role in a March 2020 overdose death has been arrested again for allegedly selling drugs.

Sheila Rochelle Johnson, 56, was arrested Wednesday, Nov. 30, on suspicion of manufacturing, delivering and possession with intent to sell of a controlled substance (cocaine), according to Whatcom County Jail logs.

Johnson is expected to make her first appearance in the case in Whatcom County Superior Court Wednesday afternoon, according to court records.

Amy Kathrine Hamner, 45, was also arrested as part of the same incident, the jail logs show.

Johnson has been out of custody since Aug. 30, 2020, on a $100,000 bond for a case in which prosecutors allege she was complicit in the March 9, 2020, overdose death of Evan Parberry, 31.

The Whatcom County Medical Examiner’s Office determined Parberry’s cause of death was illicit polysubstance use/overdose of fentanyl, cocaine and benzodiazepine, according to court records.

Johnson is charged with one count of first-degree manslaughter in the case. Prosecutors have also included alternative charges of controlled substance homicide and second-degree manslaughter, court records state.

Parberry was found dead in his residence in the 1000 block of Slater Road from an apparent overdose after emergency personnel were called to home for a medical emergency in early March 2020, according to court records. When investigators arrived, they found crushed powder and assortment of pills nearby, according to court records.

Whatcom sheriff’s deputies recognized the pills as “blues,” or counterfeit fentanyl-laced blue pills with “M30” on them that resemble Oxycodone. An analysis from the state lab confirmed the presence of fentanyl in the drugs, the court records state.

Johnson was one of three people arrested for Parberry’s death after a months-long investigation by the Whatcom County Gang and Drug Task Force, The Herald previously reported. Brezedric Antowyn Jamerson, 52, and Kim Mcwillis Ribble, 58, are also facing one count each of first-degree manslaughter, or, in the alternative, controlled substance homicide, or in the alternative second-degree manslaughter, according to court records.

Johnson was allegedly with Jamerson when he sold the fentanyl-laced pills to Parberry while they were all at Ribble’s residence. Johnson also allegedly sold Parberry cocaine, which investigators believe likely contributed to his overdose death, the court records state.

Jamerson has been out of custody since March 3, 2021, in lieu of $200,000 bond, records show. Jamerson is facing charges in a separate, unrelated case from May in which he’s accused of selling stolen catalytic converters, the records state.

Ribble has been out of custody since Aug. 26, 2020. The court set Ribble’s bail at $200,000, but later accepted a real property bond in exchange for her future appearances in court. Jack Parberry, the victim’s uncle, put up his Bellingham house, which was estimated to be worth more than $596,000 at the time, as the collateral to secure Ribble’s release from jail, according to court records.

Johnson’s jury trial in the manslaughter case is tentatively scheduled for April 17, 2023.

Jamerson’s and Ribble’s jury trials are also tentatively scheduled for the same day, court records show.