Paragraph 10 reads: "He was takingProzac which had been prescribed for him. He mixed the Prozac with alcohol. Our many prayers were answered because we had prayed for probation. We also prayed that if the decision was not probation that he would receive a light sentence. God is good,” she added.
SSRI Stories Note: The Physicians Desk Reference states that antidepressants can cause a craving for alcohol and can cause alcohol abuse. Also, the liver cannot metabolize the antidepressant and the alcohol simultaneously, thus leading to higher levels of both alcohol and the antidepressant in the human body.
A Brazoria County jury found Alvin resident Michael Perkins, 36, guilty on two charges of attempted capital murder.
The charges were filed last year after Perkins shot at Alvin police officers during a standoff. During the sentencing phase of the trial, jurors decided that Perkins should serve seven years in prison.
He will be able to serve the sentence concurrently. The time he has served since his arrest, will be counted as time served towards the seven year sentence.
Perkins was arrested on May 25, 2009, after police officers were called to Perkins’ residence on West Sidnor. The call was received from a relative of Perkins who lived in another city. The relative asked the police to check on Perkins as she feared he was suicidal.
When police arrived, Perkins opened fire. A standoff between police officers and Perkins listed for almost four hours.
No officers were wounded, but another resident of the apartment complex, Martin Rivera, was shot in the shoulder when he walked outside his apartment during the standoff.
The SWAT team, K-9 officers and all available Alvin Police Officers were involved in the standoff.
“Michael was not trying to hurt anyone. It was his plan that he would be killed by the police. He was adopted by my son’s family. He had been terribly abused as a child by his biological parents prior to his adoption. That day, he was deeply depressed because of family issues,” Perkins grandmother said.
“He was taking Prozac which had been prescribed for him. He mixed the Prozac with alcohol. Our many prayers were answered because we had prayed for probation. We also prayed that if the decision was not probation that he would receive a light sentence. God is good,” she added.
Perkins father, Jerry, stood before the jury with tears in his eyes and with a trembling voice told the jury about Michael. “I have sat in that church seat for 60 years and did not believe what prayer can do. Through this ordeal, I am now convinced that it does work,” he explained. Many of Perkins family members stood as Jerry Perkins spoke in a show of support for the defendant.
Perkins still has other charges hanging over his head. He has an aggravated assault charge (for shooting Rivera) and the sexual assault of a child which could go to trial in the future.