A mother in Scottsdale, Arizona, has been sentenced to more than 11 years in prison after her toddler died of a fentanyl overdose in 2022, AZFamily reported.
Maricopa County Attorney Rachel Mitchell announced the sentencing of 34-year-old Gabrielle Marshall on Monday. Marshall was ordered to serve 11 years and six months in prison, followed by ten years of probation, according to the report.
Police responded to a call at a home on September 19, 2022, of a 13-month-old child who ingested fentanyl. Mitchell said Marshall was the only adult in the home at the time. Marshall admitted her child was exposed to her opiates, and police also found drug paraphernalia in the home, Mitchell said.
“During their investigation, police said they learned a neighbor heard a woman screaming, ‘Oh, my God. Oh, my God, no’ multiple times,” according to the report. “Marshall started calling and texting a friend, saying the baby was dead and ate her pills, court documents say. She reportedly told the friend, ‘I’m going to jail forever.'”
According to court records, Marshall asked her friend for Narcan, and her friend told her several times to call 911. Police also looked through Marshall’s internet search history and found “baby took fentanyl” and “CPR on baby overdosing.”
“The child was cold to the touch and was administered Narcan, but later was pronounced dead at the hospital,” according to the report.
A subsequent autopsy found puncture wounds on the baby that paramedics did not make, and a toxicology report showed fentanyl and norfentanyl in the child’s blood.
Marshall pled guilty in April to second-degree murder and child abuse.
“Losing a child is an immeasurable agony, but knowing that because of your addiction, your child is gone is something this mother will have to live with for the rest of her life,” Mitchell said.
