A 34-year-old West Allis man is facing charges after he allegedly robbed a Waukesha for pills, then tried to overdose inside a laundry room of an apartment building.
David V. Hanley was charged in on Friday with one count of armed robbery and one count of possession of narcotic drugs. If convicted, he faces up to 43 ½ years in prison and $110,000 in fines.
According to the criminal complaint:
At 11:34 p.m. June 24, Hanley went to Walgreens located at 221 E. Sunset Drive and approached a pharmacist. He then told the pharmacist to give him oxycontin pills. The pharmacist first didn’t comply with the command, but Hanley then said “I’m going to count down from 10, if you don’t give them to me, I’m going to shoot/kill you.”
The pharmacist still didn’t get the pills, so Hanley began to count down from 10 and reached under his shirt towards what may have been a gun. When he got to five, the pharmacist went to get three bottles of pills and hit the panic button before giving the pills to Hanley.
While police were investigating the incident, they received a call from another man who said he had just driven Hanley to the store and waited in the car while he was inside. When Hanley returned with pill bottles, the man said he knew Hanley didn’t have money to buy the pills, so he called police and told them they were at his residence in the 1000 block of Delafield Street.
Officers found Hanley inside a fifth floor laundry room and chewing on the pills. He told the officers he robbed the pharmacy and had taken multiple pills because he didn’t want to live anymore and wanted to kill himself.
Hanley was then taken to Waukesha Memorial Hospital where he made sporadic utterances about taking 20 of the oxycontin pills and being a drug addict with nothing to live for. He said he was homeless and robbed the pharmacy because he knew he would get caught and he needed a place to stay for awhile.
He later told police he took drugs before he robbed the pharmacy and doesn’t remember claiming to have a gun.
Hanley is currently being held in Waukesha County Jail on $20,000 bond.
In past generations someone his age would have been in the prime of their life as far as income and outlook for the future are concerned, but unfortunately previous generations seem to have taken all that there is to take and there is little hope right now for about 20% of our society. At least now he will have a roof over his head, 3 meals a day and access to healthcare. As for myself I can be glad that I'm not in that segment-- working, eating good enough and paying my bills on time, so long as I can continue to work (even if there is nothing left to save for emergencies or retirement). But the day that something happens where I'm not able to continue working 50 hours a week I very well may be in the same hopeless state that this guy was in. So this is what it means to be an American now.
My love goes out to you David, my prayers are for you, I have not turned my back on you. I know the good man that still lies within. Please pray for my brother...