Woman charged after her 3-year-old son overdosed on fentanyl, police say

Investigators believe a 3-year-old boy overdosed on fentanyl he found on his mother’s dresser last month in Spokane Valley.

Jessica A. Demaine, 38, was booked Wednesday into the Spokane County Jail on suspicion of second-degree criminal mistreatment, third-degree child assault and reckless endangerment, according to a Spokane Valley Police Department news release. The boy survived.

Deputies and firefighters responded at about 10:40 a.m. Feb. 21 to a call reporting a 3-year-old was unresponsive and not breathing at a residence in the 11700 block of East Mansfield Avenue, police said in the release. Firefighters treated the child, who started breathing, and he was taken to the hospital.

Cameron R. Danley, 40, called 911 saying he found the child, who was unresponsive and turning blue, on the floor upstairs, police said.

Detectives believe the victim’s mother, Demaine, left suspected fentanyl pills on her bedroom dresser. The child, thinking it was candy, ingested the pills, lost consciousness and stopped breathing, the release said.

Detectives searched the Mansfield Avenue residence Wednesday and detained Demaine, Danley and 37-year-old Tana M. Brown.

During the search, investigators recovered suspected fentanyl pills, suspected methamphetamine and drug paraphernalia in Demaine’s bedroom and attached bathroom toilet, indicating someone attempted to flush and destroy evidence, according to police.

Danley and Brown were booked into jail for unrelated misdemeanor warrants. All three defendants remained in jail Wednesday night.

“It is shocking that any parent would recklessly or intentionally expose their child to fentanyl, knowing the potentially deadly consequences,” Sheriff John Nowels said in the release. “When we learn of this inexcusable behavior, we will seek charges to hold them accountable.”

Detectives continue to investigate, and additional charges or arrests are possible.

It’s the third known time a young child has overdosed on their parent’s fentanyl in Spokane Valley in the past month and a half.

On Feb. 1, deputies say a baby overdosed but survived after their mother awoke in an Argonne Road hotel to the child holding a spoon used for the drugs. Micala Cameron, 24, was arrested on suspicion of reckless endangerment with a controlled substance and giving a fake name to deputies.

Then on March 5, deputies in the Valley arrested Samantha J. Anderson, 35, after her 1-year-old son overdosed but survived from playing with a fentanyl foil stored in her purse, according to the sheriff’s office. She faces a charge of reckless endangerment.