Kidd Guilty in Drug-Induced Homicide

A Kendall County jury has found a former Oswego resident guilty in the of his girlfriend.

Jason Kidd faces up to 30 years in prison for his part in the 2010 death of Merrideth Castro at the home they shared in the 100 block of Canterbury Court.

The jury reached its verdict at about 7 p.m. Thursday, according to media relations officer Rob Sherwood. According to a report in the Aurora Beacon News, Kidd will be sentenced Jan. 6.

Police responded to a death investigation at about 6:30 a.m. March 7, 2010. Castro was found unresponsive and pronounced dead on the scene. An investigation revealed that prior to her death, Castro had taken cocaine purchased by Kidd, police said. Kidd delivered the cocaine to Castro and ingested the drug with her, police said.

An autopsy and toxicology test revealed that she died from an overdose of cocaine and opiate.

Kidd is the first person tried and convicted of drug-induced homicide in Kendall County. The charge targets those who sell, hand or otherwise transfer controlled substances to someone who later dies after ingesting any amount of that substance.

Another area man, Jose O. Mares, of 111 Dolores St. in Oswego Township, for his alleged involvement in the heroin overdose death of a 39-year-old Aurora man on Oct. 21, 2009. Mares will next appear in Kendall County court on pretrial motions Dec. 15.