An Oklahoma City mother and her boyfriend are jailed on child neglect complaints after a 10-month-old girl was transported to a local hospital with signs of drug overdose.
18-year-old Mary Warden called paramedics when her daughter "wouldn't wake up." The EMSA crew called police when they arrived to find the girl suffering from signs of apparent drug overdose, and then transported the child to the hospital in critical condition.
When police interviewed the young mother, they said she appeared to be under the influence of drugs. She was allegedly evasive and uninterested about the welfare of her child. Police say Warden was unable to answer her questions, and that while paramedics worked on the baby, she never asked about the girl's condition or where they would be transporting her daughter.
They also tried interviewing Warden's boyfriend, 21-year-old Jori Franklin, but he kept falling asleep during questioning.
Warden allegedly told police that she believed the child accidentally ingested one of her sister's prescription medications that had fallen on the floor, but police say they found no prescriptions in the home.
They did, however, allegedly discover drugs, including K2, a synthetic form of marijuana.
Police received a call from the hospital saying that someone called in a tip saying that Franklin had admitted to giving the child K2 so he could "get rid of it," because he was prostituting the baby's mother.
They were also called to the hospital because Franklin and Warden eventually showed up and caused "a scene" in the lobby. The two were arrested on outstanding warrants and booked into the Oklahoma County Jail on child neglect complaints.
The child, who remains hospitalized in DHS custody, is expected to recover after being given medication to counteract the drugs, being placed in a warming bed to reverse hypothermia, and being hooked to a ventilator to facilitate breathing.
Under Oklahoma law, child neglect is punishable by a maximum of life in prison, but if the reported details of the case are true, the baby's mother and her mother's boyfriend could be facing additional serious charges, including child abuse, attempted murder, and possession of drugs in the presence of a child.
If it is determined that Franklin did, in fact, purposely administer synthetic marijuana to the child with the intent to kill her, he could be charged with administering poison with intent to kill. Under 21 O.S. 651, the attempt to murder someone by poisoning is punishable by a minimum of 10 years in prison and a maximum of life.
Given the nature of the allegations against Warden and Franklin, they could be looking at serious prison time, indeed.
