'I Was Screaming': Mom Charged After Her Baby Overdoses On Heroin-Fentanyl Mixture
BISMARCK, N.D. (CBS Local) -- A North Dakota mother of three was arrested after authorities said her 8-month-old baby overdosed on opioids.
Sierra Rose Toroitich, 25, of Bismarck, was napping with her baby at a hotel when the infant "got into" a heroin-fentanyl mixture on the bed, the Dickinson Press reported Monday.
After the child overdosed, the mother failed to call 911, Stark County Assistant State's Attorney Amanda Engelstad said.
The baby's father, who had put them up in a hotel so he could visit with his children, happened to visit the room and called authorities when he discovered the child wasn't breathing, the newspaper reported.
Emergency responders arrived, gave the baby Narcan and rushed the child to a nearby hospital, Engelstad said.
Bismarck woman charged in overdose of 8-month-old baby https://t.co/nAK7HSTq0F pic.twitter.com/ba4WhjeqfX
— The Dickinson Press (@dickinsonpress) November 5, 2019
Toroitich called herself a "great mom" during a court appearance and said she didn't call 911 because her "phone was charging," the Press reported.
"I had the baby in my hands," she said. "I was screaming. I didn't know what to do."
Toroitich was charged with possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, both Class A misdemeanors, and three counts of endangerment of a child, two Class C felonies and one Class B felony.
She was being held on $100,000 bond and has been barred from having contact with her kids, the Press reported.
Toroitich's brother, Lawrence J. Bearking, is believed to have supplied the drugs, according to Engelstad. Bearking fled the scene, and she said there is a warrant for his arrest.