Mother ‘killed baby with cup containing enough fentanyl “to kill two horses'”
The 17-month-old girl died with a lethal amount of fentanyl in her blood.
A mother killed her daughter by giving her a sippy cup with enough fentanyl ‘to kill two horses,’ police said.
Jhenea Pratt, 24, appeared in court Monday for the death of her 17-month-old daughter Charlette Napper-Talley in April, 2018 in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania.
Prosecutors showed the court a video of an interview Pittsburgh police conducted with Pratt in July.
The video features Detective Michael Flynn who spoke with the mother about a pink cup found on the toddler’s bed with red liquid inside – which was found to contain deadly amounts of the prescription opioid, according to the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette.
Pratt denied knowing anything about her daughter’s death. When asked how the drugs got in the cup, she said that it may have been from a fruit-flavored ‘happy drink’ that ‘tasted funny to her.’
Police say Pratt’s then-boyfriend, Albert Williams, was caring for the girl earlier that day and gave her a drink around noon.
Hours later, Pratt reportedly gave the girl a drink from the same cup. She smoked marijuana and checked on Charlette an hour later to find her not breathing, cold to the touch, and her lips were turning blue, Penn Live reported.
Mother 'killed baby with cup containing enough fentanyl "to kill two horses'"
Pratt called police, who came and gave the toddler CPR until paramedics arrived to rush her to the hospital. She was later pronounced dead.
An autopsy that included three blood screening found deadly amounts of fentanyl in the girl’s blood.
Authorities arrested and charged Pratt, even though her boyfriend gave the child a drink in the same cup because Charlette ‘would have died very shortly after ingesting (fentanyl).
Charlette reportedly did not stop breathing until the Williams left the apartment.
The police affidavit said: Jhenea Pratt was the only person present during the afternoon hours that was with Charlette.’
Both Pratt and Williams denied using, or being in possession of, heroin or fentanyl.