Michigan man sentenced to 60 weekend days behind bars for poisoning his wife’s coffee

A man from Michigan was sentenced to 60 days in jail that he will serve during weekends after he pleaded guilty to poisoning his wife’s coffee after she filed for divorce, NBC News reported.

According to the news agency, Brian Kozlowski was given the sentence by Judge Anthony Viviano on Thursday.

{mosads}The judge’s decision came after Kozlowski pleaded guilty to spiking his then-wife’s coffee with diphenhydramine, which is an antihistamine used to treat allergies and insomnia, in July 2018, several months after she filed for divorce in May 2018.

Therese Kozlowski reportedly told officials that she grew suspicious of her husband in July after she began to experience blurred vision and other symptoms shortly after drinking coffee that had been prepared by her husband.

As a result, she installed cameras in the kitchen of their home, she said, and when she viewed the footage, she saw that her husband had spiked her coffee with diphenhydramine multiple times. 

Prosecutors said the last cup of coffee her husband prepared for her was found to contain 127 milliliters of diphenhydramine.

“Brian was trying to kill me to keep his comfortable life from slipping away,” Therese Kozlowski said of her ex-husband’s actions in court, according to NBC affiliate WDIV-TV.

“This defendant’s actions were despicable,” Macomb County Prosecutor Eric Smith said in a release. “We are all thankful this sneak attack didn’t cause the victim to fall asleep behind the wheel on her way to work killing herself and/or innocent drivers.”

Prosecutors argued that criminal guidelines for the offense indicated that Brian Kozlowski should be sentenced to a minimum of 19 to 38 months in prison. 

“This defendant deserves nothing less than a prison cell for his actions,” Smith said.

After the sentencing on Thursday, Smith tweeted that the judge’s decision was “just a slap on the wrist.”  

“The Court seemed more focused on ensuring the defendant’s freedom & ability to work than the victim’s safety,” he wrote.

The Court seemed more focused on ensuring the defendant’s freedom & ability to work than the victim’s safety. It is troubling to think that someone who commits such a reckless crime, putting so many people at risk, walks away with just a slap on the wrist.#ProsecutorSmith https://t.co/11MjlIXpn8

— Eric Smith (@ProsecutorSmith) August 1, 2019

According to NBC News, Smith has indicated plans to appeal the judge’s decision.