A federal judge has tossed out the guilty plea of an East Lyme man who sold heroin with fentanyl to 25-year-old Fred Pardini prior to Pardini's overdose death in June 2016 and issued a memo scolding the U.S. Attorney's Office for failing to respect the rights and interests of the victim's family.

U.S. District Judge Jeffrey Alker Meyer was scheduled to sentence Christopher Stevens, 26, on April 12. Stevens had pleaded guilty in January to distribution of heroin. He faced 21 to 27 months in prison under federal sentencing guidelines, along with a $10,000 fine and three years of probation. The judge had the discretion to depart from the guidelines, which are calculated using factors such as Stevens' acceptance of responsibility, criminal history and the nature of the offense.

In a March 6 memorandum, Meyer wrote that he was rejecting the plea deal after learning the prosecutor's office had entered into a deal "with terms that were highly favorable to the defendant without first consulting about the agreement with the victim's surviving family." Meyer said the government needs to fully connect with Pardini's family prior to entering into another plea agreement.

Stevens, meanwhile, has attended inpatient and outpatient treatment programs while his case was pending. Meyer recently granted a request from defense attorney Paul F. Thomas to allow Stevens to participate in the government's Support Court program, which connects participants with treatment, employment and education programs.

In a footnote to his memo, the judge wrote that the prosecutor in the Stevens case, Assistant U.S. Attorney Michael E. Runowicz, is a dedicated public servant and that nothing in the ruling should be understood as a conclusion that he acted in bad faith or engaged in ethical misconduct.

Under U.S. Attorney Deirdre M. Daly, federal prosecutors in Connecticut have brought charges in more than 60 cases where individuals have died from opioid overdoses. Daly on Friday issued a statement in response to questions about the Stevens case.

"Our office is committed to prioritizing and supporting the rights of victims. In fact, there is no higher priority than supporting the victims of crimes, whether they be victims or families of victims in violent crime, opioid overdose, human trafficking or investor fraud cases," Daly wrote. "Prosecutors receive training about victims' rights and devote significant time and resources to communicating and supporting victims during all stages of these prosecutions. We always encourage victims and their families to attend court and speak at the sentencings of the defendants in those cases in which they were victimized."

According to court records, a victim witness coordinator for the prosecutor's office phoned Pardini's mother about the proposed resolution of the case prior to the January plea hearing, and the mother expressed dissatisfaction that Stevens would not be pleading guilty to a more serious charge in light of her son's death. At the plea hearing, Runowicz, who had only recently been assigned to the case, told Meyer he did not speak directly with the victim's family but was unaware of any objections. Meyer accepted the plea, but ordered the government to file a statement outlining its efforts to comply with a law regulating victims' rights.

The government's response confirmed the prosecutor had not spoken directly with the mother, and that the mother was not satisfied with the plea agreement. Some victims may urge the prosecutor to deal severely with defendants, and some may seek leniency, Meyer wrote in the memo.

"Whatever the views a victim may have, the integrity of a criminal prosecution is stronger if the prosecutor learns about these views if possible before making major decisions in a case," he wrote.

Meyer wrote that the prosecution failed also to discuss with Pardini's mother the potential that the court could order Stevens to pay restitution for Pardini's lost future income. Pardini had a son, who was 3 years old and was with him at the time of his death, according to court documents. The plea agreement potentially shortchanges the victim's family's right to restitution, contrary to the Crime Victim's Rights Act of 2004, according to the memorandum.

"A 3-year-old boy now has no father. Who will care for him financially?" Meyer wrote.

To date, none of the 10 defendants sentenced in federal overdose cases has been ordered to pay restitution to a victim's family.

"In many of these cases, the defendants have few if any assets," Daly said in her email.

Meyer said the prosecutor could have explained to the family why the government did not pursue a more serious charge of distributing heroin resulting in a death, which would have exposed Stevens to a minimum of 20 years in prison. "A reasonable prosecutor could conclude such a harsh sentence is not warranted without evidence that Stevens intended or wanted to kill the victim," Meyer wrote.

Pardini's mother could not be reached to comment. His son's maternal grandfather, retired New London Police Officer Joe Olivero, said in a text message that his family prefers not to speak about the matter and has chosen to move on with their lives.

According to court documents, East Lyme police found Pardini slumped over the steering wheel of a car, dead, after responding about 1 a.m. on June 4, 2016, to a call of a running car parked near the intersection of Naomi Lane and Wilbur Lane. The 3-year-old was sleeping in a car seat in the back seat, but later told a responding officer, "car broken" and "daddy sleeping," according to a criminal complaint.

Pardini had in his hand a crumpled-up wax baggy and a bank receipt showing a withdrawal of $300. The police said they found three additional empty baggies underneath the driver's seat, an unused syringe in the victim's pocket and a morphine pill in his wallet. He also had a cellphone.

Stevens lived about a tenth of a mile away on Boston Post Road, and investigators used phone records to confirm that he had arranged to meet with Pardini and sell him drugs in the hours before Pardini's death.

"I got the fuego," Stevens texted to Pardini at 10:16 that night.

Fuego, the Spanish word for fire, is a commonly used slang term referring to heroin purported to be of high quality, according to an affidavit written by Special Agent Dana R. Mofenson of the federal Drug Enforcement Administration.

The state Office of the Chief Medical Examiner ruled Pardini died of acute heroin and fentanyl toxicity and also had benzodiazepine in his system.

k.florin@theday.com