Posted on: Thursday, February 3, 2005

Autopsy shows 'ice' killed ex-parole chief

By David Waite
Advertiser Staff Writer

He was a former police officer, member and chairman of the state parole board, consultant to the state judiciary and an administrator in the agency that runs the state's prison system.

Marc Oley, who died Christmas Day at age 60, also used crystal methamphetamine and died as a consequence of smoking the illicit drug, according to Honolulu's chief medical examiner, Dr. Kanthi De Alwis.

In a signed report dated Jan. 19, De Alwis said the cause of Oley's death was "bronchial asthma due to or as a consequence of (the) effects of crystal methamphetamine."

Those who knew Oley were stunned by his death and by what caused it.

"I'm absolutely shocked," said Keith Kamita, state Narcotics Enforcement Division administrator. "We've had people from all walks of life — nurses, lawyers and even some doctors — wind up with a crystal meth problem, but someone with Marc Oley's background, you just don't expect to get involved with crystal meth."

Keith Kaneshiro, a former Honolulu prosecuting attorney and former head of the state Department of Public Safety, said that Oley was "very responsive to the needs of law enforcement."

"I remember that it was while I was prosecuting attorney that Oley said that most of the guys coming into our prison system had drug problems," Kaneshiro said.

"I keep telling everyone over and over again, crystal meth affects everyone — no one is immune from becoming caught up in it."

On Dec. 30, the city's Department of the Medical Examiner sent samples of blood taken from Oley to a private lab in California for a toxicology screening. The results came back Jan. 14 saying the sample tested positive for amphetamine and methamphetamine.

"We draw blood and urine for a toxicology screening from every body that comes through the doors here. We do that routinely," De Alwis said.

In her report, De Alwis described Oley has having "a history of asthma, depression and possible methamphetamine use, who had been complaining of asthma attacks and was using ... Albuterol (a drug that is commonly inhaled to treat asthma symptoms).

"He (Oley) was found unresponsive at home in respiratory distress," according to the medical examiner's report.

He was pronounced dead at 6:29 p.m. Christmas Day.

Oley's family members could not be reached for comment but his longtime companion referred a request for comment to Honolulu attorney Eric Seitz.

"Marc's family takes pride in his many years of public service and his contributions to the community," Seitz said.

Family members asked to be allowed to grieve privately, Seitz said.

Marc Oley knew well of the dire consequences inherent in using crystal meth.

It was during his stint as an administrator with the state Department of Public Safety that Oley said 80 percent of the men and women entering Hawai'i prisons during the previous year had substance abuse problems and that the drug of choice in the overwhelming majority of those cases was crystal methamphetamine.

Martha Torney, a corrections program specialist with the state Department of Public Safety, knew Oley for nearly 30 years after the two met in graduate school at the University of Hawai'i.

"He told me he ended his career as a police officer because he just didn't like having to arrest people," Torney said.

She described Oley as a "very caring person."

"As parole board chairman he had a great compassion for people and believed if you could help people change their behavior you could help the community in general," she said.

Hawai'i Paroling Authority records showed that Oley became a member of the board in July 1983 and its chairman a year later. He resigned as chairman in June 1991, but was listed as the board's special project coordinator from July 1991 to December 1994.

Oley's death magnifies the growing number of people succumbing to crystal meth, also known as "ice," in Hawai'i. In October, De Alwis predicted that ice would be the cause of a record-high number of deaths on O'ahu, surpassing the previous all-time high of 62 in 2002.

Last week, she said she expects the tally for 2004 to be 67 or 68.

"That's far too many for our small community," De Alwis said. "We need to get the message out that crystal methamphetamine kills people through what appear to be 'natural' causes."

Last spring, De Alwis made a connection to deaths once thought unrelated to the drug after she noticed an increase in strokes, heart attacks and bronchial asthma cases, such as Oley's.

De Alwis said attributing deaths to methamphetamine use although the victim dies from seemingly natural causes is now a cause-of-death standard recognized by the National Association of Medical Examiners, the agency that accredits the Ho-nolulu Medical Examiner's office.

Reach David Waite at 525-7412 or e-mail at dwaite@honoluluadvertiser.com.