ANNE ARUNDEL COUNTY, Md. — Anne Arundel County Police arrested a mother and grandmother Thursday after an autopsy showed that an infant in their care died from fentanyl and heroin intoxication.
Police began investigating the case in July, when Anne Arundel County Police and Fire responded to a house in Orchard Beach for reports of an infant in medical distress on July 27. Authorities found a 9-month-old boy unresponsive, and transported him to Baltimore Washington Medical Center, where he was pronounced dead.
Investigators interviewed several family members who lived in the house with the infant, including his 17-year-old mother Alexus Lorraine Taylor and his 43-year-old grandmother Laurie Ann Taylor. Preliminary investigations found that the baby had been wheezing before he died, but had gone to bed around 2 a.m. Around 9:15 a.m., Alexus and Laurie, who were co-sleeping with the infant, found him unresponsive.
The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner (OCME) performed an autopsy and found fentanyl and morphine in the infant's blood and liver, and determined the baby ingested fentanyl and heroin. The OCME ruled the death a homicide, due to fentanyl and heroin intoxication.
Police served a search warrant at the infant's house on Aug. 14 and found "empty capsules with trace powdery substances" in every room of the house. In total, more than 100 gel caps were recovered, including in the infant's diaper bag. The gel caps tested positive for both heroin and fentanyl.
Further investigative interviews found that Laurie had driven her two daughters and the baby to Baltimore City on July 26 to buy heroin, according to police. Police said four heroin capsules were purchased, but when the women got home, they only found three. Investigators said they were told the family looked for the missing capsule but it was never found. Police said Laurie and Alexus then drove back to Baltimore City to buy more heroin, leaving the baby at home. When they returned home around 1 a.m., they told police they noticed the baby was breathing oddly, and questioned whether he could have ingested the missing heroin capsule, but they decided to take a "wait and see" approach in regards to medical care. By 9:15 a.m., the baby was unresponsive.
Police said both Alexus, who is charged as an adult, and Laurie have been charged with first-degree child abuse resulting in death, second-degree child abuse, manslaughter and reckless endangerment; Laurie was additionally charged with two counts of reckless endangerment in regards to Alexus.
This is an ongoing investigation and police ask anyone with information regarding this incident to contact the Anne Arundel County Homicide Unit at 410-222-4731.
In 2017, Anne Arundel County created a pilot program called "Safe Stations" that allows anyone with substance abuse disorders to go to a police or fire station and request substance abuse treatment without fear of legal ramifications.