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SCIPIO, Millard County — Police are searching for a man accused of giving his wife a bottle of vodka when he knew the potentially deadly consequences of mixing alcohol with her medications.
Police say Lee J. McIntyre, formerly of Scipio, knew that doctors had told his wife not to drink alcohol in light of the medications she was taking in October 2013, but he brought her a bottle of "cheap vodka" anyway when she requested alcohol.
Janet McIntyre died Oct. 18, 2013, of "acute ethanol and mixed drug toxicity," according to charging documents filed in 4th District Court last week.
The couple had not lived together for about two years, but Lee McIntyre would occasionally stay at Janet McIntyre's home on weekends, the court affidavit states. Janet McIntyre had regularly drank through her adult life, and members of her family were aware her doctors had told her not to combine alcohol with the medications she was taking for a number of illnesses.
"Police say Lee J. McIntyre, formerly of Scipio, knew that doctors had told his wife not to drink alcohol in light of the medications she was taking in October 2013, but he brought her a bottle of 'cheap vodka' anyway when she requested alcohol."
After the restriction was in place, Janet McIntyre had reportedly asked her children, their spouses and Lee McIntyre for alcohol.
Lee McIntyre called police and told them he had found his wife dead in the living room. He initially told officers he had not seen his wife drinking, but he later admitted to bringing the woman the bottle of vodka and seeing her drink a small amount, court documents state.
Lee McIntyre also told police that after they left his wife's home on the day she died, he took an empty vodka bottle from the kitchen trash can and threw it away at a nearby gas station, the affidavit states.
Text messages indicate Lee McIntyre was aware of the alcohol restriction and the risks posed to his wife if she drank, according to police and prosecutors.
Lee McIntyre was charged in 4th District Court with manslaughter, a second-degree felony, and evidence tampering, a class A misdemeanor. A warrant has been issued for his arrest.
Police have not been able to locate Lee McIntyre, according to the affidavit. For a time after his wife's death, he reportedly lived with his parents in California. Police last spoke to him in Salt Lake City, and he told officers he was homeless.
Lee McIntyre reportedly sent a letter to his brother a few months after his wife's death asking for $500, explaining that he had spent all the money from the woman's life insurance policy, police say.
