Whisper
#byefelicia
Sarah Stephens
http://www.kcra.com/news/baby-dies-...21392110/-/kdg4usz/-/index.html#ixzz2bWkD8t66A Sacramento woman is accused of killing her infant, who died in late September 2012 of an apparent drug overdose, police said Thursday.
Sarah Stephens, 32, is charged with second-degree murder and felony child endangerment, according to a news release from the Citrus Heights Police Department.
The baby was 8 months old when he died.
Police went out to an apartment complex in the 7000 block of Auburn Boulevard after learning of an unresponsive infant.
Officers determined the baby had died, but didn't immediately spot any signs of foul play, police said.
The toxicology report later showed he in fact died of a drug overdose.
Stephens "knowingly and without regard for the infant's health, administered controlled substances to the infant, ultimately causing his death," the release reads.
It took investigators several months to piece together the information.
Citrus Heights detectives worked with the Sacramento County District Attorney’s Office, Sacramento County Coroner's Office, Sacramento County Crime Lab, Child Protective Services and medical professionals.
Stephens was taken into custody from her home on Wednesday, police said.
[...]
Ryder Salmen
Grandfather: Family Reached out to Mother in Drug Spiral
http://fox40.com/2013/08/08/grandfather-family-reached-out-to-mother-in-drug-spiral/#ixzz2bWlkJyLXHis name was Ryder Salmen — and you’d never know it from the bright eyes and a sweet smile, but in eight short months of life he endured more than most full-grown adults.
“She deliberately, in my opinion, fed that baby drugs so she wouldn’t have to … That was her babysitter,” said Ryder’s grandfather Alan Salmen.
[...]
“We reached out,” Salmen said. “We knew what was going on, ‘please give him to us. If you don’t have the time or don’t want to do it, please, we’re here.’”
But Ryder’s grandfather says, despite an accidental overdose at two months that left Ryder hospitalized, and despite Ryder being in an almost constant state of withdrawal when he was with them, Stephens fought for and retained half custody of the little boy.