Sentencing in 'The Wire' actor's death: Nephew urges compassion for defendant

A 71-year-old man linked to a crew of drug dealers blamed in the fentanyl-laced heroin death of 'The Wire' actor Michael K. Williams was sentenced Tuesday to more than two years in prison at a proceeding in which the actor's nephew recommended compassion for the defendant.

A 71-year-old man linked to a crew of drug dealers blamed in the fentanyl-laced heroin death of "The Wire" actor Michael K. Williams was sentenced Tuesday to more than two years in prison at a proceeding in which the actor's nephew recommended compassion for the defendant.

Carlos Macci was sentenced to 2 1/2 years in prison by U.S. District Judge Ronnie Abrams, who told Macci that selling heroin and fentanyl "not only cost Mr. Williams his life, but it's costing your freedom," in part because he did not stop selling drugs after Williams died.

Macci had pleaded guilty to conspiring to possess and distribute narcotics.

The judge noted that more than 3,000 fatal overdoses occurred in New York City last year, killing many who never understood the threat they faced from lethal doses of drugs whose components were unclear.

Williams, who also starred in films and other TV series including "Boardwalk Empire," overdosed in his Brooklyn penthouse apartment in September 2021. He was 54.

Macci benefited from words spoken on his behalf by Williams' nephew and a sentencing letter submitted weeks ago in which David Simon, a co-creator of HBO's "The Wire," urged leniency, saying Williams himself "would fight for Mr. Macci."

Macci was not charged directly in the actor's death, although others in the case have been. Still, he could have faced nearly 20 years in prison if the judge had not agreed to depart downward from federal sentencing guidelines that called for double-digit years in prison.