After two get prison, Va. Beach mom shares sorrow and advice surrounding son’s fentanyl death
VIRGINIA BEACH, Va. (WAVY) — Diana Glasier describes her son Harrison Overcash’s life in high and low points — his early achievements, his descent into addiction, his apparent road to recovery, and then his unexpected death.
Two people are headed to prison for selling him what he thought was just heroin back in 2020, but it was laced with fentanyl.
“Nothing ever led me to believe that he would get into drugs the way that he did,” Glasier said in a Friday interview.
She has fond memories of her son.
“He was athletic, played piano, was musical, graduated with honors from Kellam, played tennis and soccer, and he was [in] the drama club.”
She said the early signs of addiction emerged during his senior year in high school.
“It started with marijuana, and I started with drug testing and I thought I could stop it right there,” Glasier said, “and oxycodone became popular and he just got addicted to that feeling. I started seeing signs — ‘we’re gonna go chill at the park.’ He was very much into Rasta and I put two and two together.”
Overcash went off to college at University of Mary Washington, but he got kicked out after one semester for smoking pot. However, he did start making a turnaround in his 20s.
“He did the AA meetings, had a sponsor, walking the walk, talking the talk,” Glasier said.
In late 2018, Overcash met a girlfriend who had family in Charlotte County in Central Virginia. “Unfortunately, her aunt was a heroin addict and a well-known drug dealer in Saxe, Virginia,” Glasier said. Overcash’s death was the focus of an investigation by Virginia State Police and authorities in and around Charlotte County.
“I buried my grief for these past four years because I wanted to get through this trial,” she said.
Dianna Connelly, 51 of Saxe, was sentenced this spring to 23 years active prison time, and Jacob Boyer, 40 of Charlotte Court House got four years active time for supplying a drug to Overcash that included heroin, fentanyl and diazepam.
Glasier said she’s pleased with that outcome, and has advice for other parents.
“Number one, don’t bury your head in the sand,” Glasier said. “If you think there’s an issue, there’s probably an issue, and get ahead of it the best you can. And don’t be afraid to seek out support or be embarrassed about addiction in your family. It needs to be an open conversation.”
The Emmy-nominated WAVY special presentation Opioids: What Every Family Needs to Know, offers a comprehensive look at addiction.
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