San Fernando Valley mother charged with murder after twin toddlers die from fentanyl

A San Fernando Valley mother whose 3-year-old twin sons died from fentanyl poisoning is facing murder charges in their deaths, prosecutors said Tuesday.

Jestice James, 22, faces two counts of murder and two counts of child abuse or endangerment under circumstances or conditions likely to cause great bodily harm or death after her son Josiah died on July 11 and his twin brother Jestine died two days later, according to the Los Angeles County District Attorney's Office.

Police previously said the boys consumed or were exposed to an unknown substance, but on Tuesday, the DA's office said the toddlers died after they were allegedly exposed to drugs laced with fentanyl, the powerful and potentially lethal synthetic opioid. 

James is being held on $4 million bail and was scheduled to appear in Los Angeles County Superior Court Tuesday. If convicted of all charges, James could face a maximum possible sentence of life in prison.

Outside the courthouse, family members gathered and embraced each other as a few spoke with reporters Tuesday morning.

"This is really hard for the family," said Regina Holmes, godmother of the twin boys. "And we want to bring awareness about fentanyl and the seriousness of fentanyl. And anyone who has a family member, a friend, an associate who is indulging in that particular drug to know that it is a fatal drug."

On July 11, first responders arrived to a home in in Canoga Park, near Sherman Way and Winnetka Avenue, shortly after 11 a.m. and tried saving the boys but Josiah died that same day. His brother, Jestine, was initially hospitalized in critical condition, police said, but was pronounced dead two days later. 

Ivory McKinzie, who was at the home when paramedics responded, said she remembers when the 3-year-old boys were found unresponsive and she heard screaming.

"The ambulance came a little later," McKinzie said. "They try to bring Narcan to save the babies. I guess that attempt didn't work."

LA County DA George Gascón said children are increasingly becoming victims of fentanyl as it continues to cause an alarming number of deaths nationwide. 

"These innocent boys reportedly came into contact with fentanyl, an opioid that has wreaked havoc across our communities," Gascón said in a statement from the DA's office. "This tragedy is part of a disturbing trend where babies and toddlers are increasingly becoming victims of the opioid crisis."

In 2021, more than 1,500 American children died from fentanyl poisoning including 40 infants and 93 children between ages 1 to 4, according to research published last year by the Journal of the American Medical Association (JAMA) Pediatrics. That year, the number of children who died from fentanyl poisoning was 30 times higher than in 2013

Precios Padilla, a cousin of the boys, said they had just turned 3 years old on July 9 — just two days before paramedics were called to the home.

"They still had a long life to live that we hoped and wished to be able to see," Padilla said. But unfortunately, they were taken way too soon, too young."

Holmes said the twin brothers were very close with one another, saying "one can't do nothing without the other."

"All of the laughter, all of the joy... all of that is going to be missed," she said.