About Us

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Terry Almanza is the CEO and founder of Drug Induced Homicide Inc., an organization born out of personal tragedy and driven by an unwavering pursuit of justice. In 2015, Terry lost her 18-year-old daughter, Sydney, to an illicit drug poisoning. At that time, the Chicago Police Department did not routinely investigate drug-related deaths as homicides, even with the 1989 Drug-Induced Homicide statute in place. Terry, a 28-year veteran of the Chicago Police Department who dedicated much of her career to gang investigations within the Bureau of Organized Crime, was determined to shift this approach.

Following Sydney’s death, Terry immersed herself in understanding drug-induced homicide laws and began collaborating with law enforcement and prosecutors to advocate for policy reform and training on handling drug poisoning cases as criminal investigations. Her efforts have helped change the framework around these tragedies, influencing a shift from viewing them as accidental overdoses to recognizing them as potential homicides, with a focus on accountability that has since contributed to reducing drug poisonings.

In 2018, Brent Tyssen and Cynthia Parker were convicted of Sydney’s homicide—a bittersweet victory in Terry’s journey. Recognizing that many other families faced similar struggles for justice, she continued her work, becoming a beacon of hope for families nationwide and a trusted partner within the judicial system.

Through Drug Induced Homicide Inc., Terry’s mission lives on as both a tribute to Sydney and a call for reform, advocating for accountability, rehabilitation, and harm reduction as key strategies in combating this crisis. With the launch of the organization’s new website, www.poisoningofamerica.org, Terry’s commitment is as strong as ever: to support families, work alongside the justice system, and inspire change.

A close friend once said, “Terry’s advocacy is, at its heart, a bereaved mother’s love letter to her daughter and to the countless victims overlooked by our judicial system.” Drug Induced Homicide Inc. will continue fighting for justice, grounded in the belief that accountability can be a powerful form of harm reduction. Accountability serves not only as a deterrent but also as a path to rehabilitation for those willing to embrace it. Many who have gone through incarceration say that it transformed their lives. While we hope everyone would choose to live as upstanding citizens, we know that some need additional support and intervention to find their way.

While driving to work one morning, Kristy Dyroff was struck by a drunk driver. After struggling to navigate the Court system, she  decided to change that.  She was elected Magistrate Judge, where she served for nearly 12 years. She fought for the voices of the victims of all crime to be heard and respected them in her sentencing. She later applied that experience to advocating for victims of crime and crisis as the Director of Communications for the National Organization for Victim Advocacy (NOVA).    In 2015, she and her husband found their beloved son, Wesley Greer, dead in his home at the age of 29.  She channeled her knowledge and persistence to get Justice for her son. Overcome with grief and despite the deep gaps in the system, she knew how to get justice. Hugo Margenat-Castro  pled guilty to Trafficking an Illicit Drug Resulting in Death and is currently serving a 20 year sentence in Federal Prison.    His case was originally assigned to the responding local Detective, who simply lacked the experience and knowledge to investigate his case.  After calling once a week after Wesley’s death for updates, and never getting answers she found a Drug Task Force including DEA Agents and took Wesley’s case to them.This was the first Fentanyl Resulting in Death case prosecuted by the US Attorney’s office.  Theresa Almanza reached out to Kristy after reading an article about the arrest of Wesley’s dealer. She wanted to know how Kristy was able to get her son's poisoning prosecuted. They became fast friends. Terry’s beautiful daughter Sydney was poisoned just three months before Wesley, and she had not gotten any cooperation from from her own police department, where she served as an Officer. They developed a plan to educate and improve police responses to illicit drug poisonings. Kristy was one of the first members to join the Drug Induced Homicide Facebook page Terry had started. This has allowed them to share their expertise and knowledge with thousands of other families and obtain justice through the criminal courts.  Now as a Board Member for the Drug Induced Homicide Inc. she volunteers her time advocating for victims of this epidemic and working directly with victims' families. Beyond working directly with victims, she urges families to be #politebutpersistent in dealing with the system. She continues to fight to remove the stigma of illicit drug deaths. It’s our duty to give all grieving families the advocacy, respect and dignity they deserve.

Dawn has a long history of volunteer work and community service starting as a young girl where she served along side her grandmother at a local soup kitchen every week for 4 years. During high school Dawn volunteered during her lunch hour in the special education classroom as assistant to the director of a special needs choir. 

Following graduation Dawn went on to work for a community funded Head Start facility where she personally developed the early childhood development curriculum utilized for  infant and toddler programming. Dawn spearheaded numerous initiatives specifically geared towards providing services to children with developmental delays and deficits.

Dawn has spent the last 20 years working as a private nanny and in 2018 she completed education and training to add prenatal and postpartum doula services to her credentials. Dawn has offered reduced and free doula support to single and low income mothers who would otherwise have gone through pregnancy and delivery alone.

For 2 years, Dawn served as board Secretary for Words On Wheels, a literacy focused non profit organization supporting families in transitional living facilities and shelters throughout Lake County IL. This organization brought volunteers to read and organize learning play activities for children in these environments in effort to offset some of the disadvantages poverty and unstable living conditions often create for the young children experiencing these hardships. In 2000 following the loss of her father to Leukemia, Dawn began participating in and organizing fundraisers for the National Leukemia and Lymphoma Society for which she has served as an Ambassador for since 2002.

As a lifelong resident of Lake County IL Dawn has always been extremely vested in the community she grew up in, raised her children in and now has 4 grandchildren residing within. Participating in community enrichment efforts, canvasing and campaigning for local government elections and contributing time and resources to programs that support public safety and welfare have been a focus of hers for most of her life. Having maintained such an active role in her community and trusting that she was educated in most areas of public interest it was the ultimate shock when on March 16, 2023 Dawn experienced the sudden loss of her beloved son Benjamin to illicit fentanyl poisoning. Since that time Dawn has been working with Drug Induced Homicide Inc. in effort to have her son's drug poisoning investigated criminally. Through this organization Dawn has learned a great deal about drug induced homicide laws and the nuances of navigating the criminal justice system in the aftermath of losing a loved one to illicit drug poisoning. 

Since the loss of Benjamin Dawn has participated in Drug Induced Homicide specific trainings for law enforcement, she was a speaker at The Lost Voices of Fentanyl Rally in Washington DC, and has been a guest on multiple podcasts and news pieces discussing the drug epidemic.Dawn is devoted to serving the growing community of bereaved families enduring the same hardships she has been facing since the loss of her son and is confident that the support and advocacy Drug Induced