Sister of drug-induced death victim speaks out

Jeff Giannini was coming home. The Atlantic County native had struggled with addiction for several years. But he was doing well, after going to Pennsylvania for recovery. The fisherman who loved the beach was getting depressed living away from the shore, his sister said. He was in contact with his mother and sister all day June 1, because they knew he was coming home, Danielle Giannini said of her only sibling. By 9 p.m., his mother knew something was wrong because he wasn't home. A Snapchat told them he had been in the city. His mother went to police. [gallery columns="2" size="large" ids="32666,32667"] The 30-year-old was found that night, dead in the driver’s seat of a vehicle in the McDonald’s parking lot on Arkansas Avenue in Atlantic City. Next to him were several bags of heroin that tested positive for heroin and — what has become a common deadly mix-in — fentanyl, according to the investigation. “He wasn’t even in Atlantic City for 10 minutes,” Danielle Giannini, 23, said of her only sibling. “That’s why these dealers need to be held accountable. This area is too easy to access drugs. Most recovering addicts are successful when they leave the area .”About two hours before Jeff was found, surveillance video shows Rajeri Curry selling him drugs, Atlantic County Prosecutor Damon Tyner said. Curry, 29, had been out on a pending drug charges, released on a summons after about 300 bags of heroin were found Jan. 17, in the Stanley Holmes Village home she shared with Kaytisha Waddell. Curry was indicted this week in the drug-induced death of Jeff Giannini. She has been jailed since her arrest June 11 — 10 days after Jeff died. Danielle Giannini is glad Tyner is cracking down on these deaths, with his Drug-Related Deaths Squad investigating overdoses as potential crimes. “I know it won’t bring him back, but I’m sure it’s saving others' lives,” Danielle Giannini said. Even in the throes of his battle, he pursued his education, his sister said, attending Atlantic Cape Community College and then Stockton University, where he was head beekeeper. “Throughout his addiction, he lived his life to the fullest, fishing and traveling and being an amazing cook,” Danielle Giannini said. The siblings grew up in Galloway Township. They lost their father in 1999, and moved to Ventnor in 2006. In his obituary, his family said he would not be defined by the addiction that ultimately took his life. As she spoke of her big brother Friday, Danielle Giannini made sure that was true. While she spoke of the way he died, it was how he lived that was important. She remembered the big brother who helped her with her homework, always had the answers and loved his hashtags. “He was loved by many people and you wouldn’t even know he was an addict if you met him,” she said. “He was adventurous and outgoing. … He was a good person.”