What passes is some parents’ mind as caring for a child can leave us shocked and saddened that children have to endure such treatment.
One mom in Maine allegedly told the father of one of her daughters that she didn’t intend to hurt their baby after allegedly rubbing heroin on her gums to help her sleep.
Her 1-year-old daughter Jordynn died in October 2018 due to fentanyl exposure possibly caused by tainted heroin, as reported by WBLZ-TV in Bangor, Maine.
Kimberly Nelligan, 33, pleaded not guilty to the possession of a scheduled drug and endangering a child.
According to USA Today, court documents say that Nelligan rubbed heroin residue on her daughter’s gums to help her sleep, a process that was also done with her two older daughters.
According to the U.S. Centers for Disease Control and Prevention, Fentanyl is a synthetic opioid pain reliever that is prescribed for severe pain, but is sold “through illegal drug markets for its heroin-like effect.”
The Bangor Daily News reported that the baby’s father told authorities he had witnessed Nelligan rubbing the heroin on their daughter’s gums. She then told him she didn’t mean to hurt her on purpose.
According to USA Today there were doubts that the mom could be charged with a felony because of “proof issues.”
Nelligan was granted bail under the condition she have no contact with her daughter’s father and no unsupervised contact with minors.
More needs to be done to protect the children of drug addicts; what they see as harmless is deadly for their children as well as themselves. Education and supervision have to be in place.
Rest in peace Jordynn.
