Did a Dad Overdose His Son?

Heroin is enough of a problem for those who knowingly use it. Now, a Washington state father has been charged with trying to kill his four-year-old son by injecting him with the drug. While the dad pleaded not guilty to attempted first-degree murder, the 37-year-old man is accused of overdosing his young son at home last month in retribution against the boy’s mother. It looks like the alleged incident was the result of a relationship gone wrong, taking place the same day the accused’s divorce was to be finalized.

The man’s estranged wife said she found her son unresponsive in bed with a syringe on his chest. She called 911 and the young boy was treated at a local hospital. That was when the fresh puncture wounds were discovered, including several on his neck and others on his buttocks, according to the arrest affidavit. An initial toxicology screen of the boy’s blood allegedly showed the presence of a soup of powerful drugs including heroin, ketamine, morphine and codeine. Doctors still aren’t sure what the long-term effects or damage there may be from the overdose.

A police search of the suspect’s house turned up syringes containing liquid believed to be illegal drugs, a burnt spoon with residue, multiple scales and $12,620 in cash. Despite the overwhelming evidence, an official verdict won’t be rendered until later this year.

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