Published: 09/05/2007
Child nearly dies of drug overdose
By Dan Atkinson
Staff Writer
SALISBURY - A child's mother and grandfather have been charged with child endangerment after the 3-year-old girl allegedly swallowed several muscle-relaxant pills Sunday afternoon.
The child could not be revived at the scene and was taken to Anna Jaques Hospital before being airlifted to Boston Children's Hospital, police Chief David L'Esperance said.
He said the girl has stabilized and is expected to survive, despite her condition Sunday. "It didn't look too good for her the other day," L'Esperance said.
Police responded to 13 Dock Lane about 1:15 p.m. Sunday after a 911 caller said the girl had ingested "a bunch of pills" and was unconscious, according to police reports. After investigating the scene, Detective Mark Thomas determined that the girl's mother, Amanda Lebel, 24, of 15 Barnard Road, Lawrence, had illegally obtained 18 Klonopin pills and given them to her father, Walter Eaton, 46, of 13 Dock Lane. Klonopin is a muscle relaxant and class C substance.
According to police, Eaton left the pills unattended and fell asleep, waking to find the girl "curled up in a ball."
L'Esperance said Eaton was charged with child endangerment for leaving the pills unattended, as well as a charge of illegal possession of a class C substance. Lebel was charged with child endangerment and distribution of a class C substance, police said.
"He fell asleep, and the kid grabbed the pills," L'Esperance said. "The mother put him in the position (to do it) ... she provided the pills and let someone of his status watch the kid."
Child endangerment laws are fairly new to Massachusetts, and L'Esperance said they seemed applicable in this case. Eaton and Lebel's conduct placed the child in a perilous situation that she did not comprehend, he said. "A 3-year-old does not have the wherewithal to distinguish pills from candy," L'Esperance said.
L'Esperance said the Department of Social Services would look after the child. Eaton and Lebel both had clerk's hearings at Newburyport District Court yesterday. Police last night did not know their bail status.
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