2-year-old Baltimore girl's death ruled homicide by fentanyl intoxication
BALTIMORE — The death of a 2-year-old girl who had fentanyl in her system has been ruled to be a homicide.
Police said Journey Sharp died in a home on Parkton Street in Southwest Baltimore in January. The child had no obvious signs of trauma to her body.
Police say that charges are now pending. However, they have not said who is being charged.
Fentanyl is responsible for more than 2,000 deaths in Maryland each year.
The autopsy report showed that Journey died of fentanyl intoxication.
"I'm very heartbroken to hear that. That's very painful to hear honestly," a neighbor told WJZ.
Joshua Sharfstein, the Vice Dean for Public Health at Johns Hopkins, spoke with WJZ News about the dangers of fentanyl.
"It's dangerous for people who are deliberately using it," Sharfstein said. "It's dangerous for a 2-year-old who might find it and put it in their mouth."
"I'm very cautious and careful about what I bring around my child and who comes around my child," a neighbor said.
While we wait to learn more about the circumstances surrounding Journey's death, Sharfstein encourages people who struggle with opioid addiction to reach out for help.
"They should call 988. It's like a new 911 but for emergencies for addiction and depression and mental health," Sharfstein said. "It's a way for people to get access to services as quick as possible."
Maryland Senator Jill P Carter posted a response on social media.
"I just learned that a 2 yr-old child in our district was pronounced dead of fentanyl intoxication. Her name was Journey Sharp. More must be done to heal, treat, and restore broken, hopeless, defeated, addicted, people of our city. There is simply too much unaddressed trauma Zeke Berzoff-Cohen. And, for the record, systemic racism is the greatest culprit.
"I have long envisioned all of the religious leaders and institutions collaborating with one another - I mean there are churches, temples, synagogues on every other corner throughout the city- how can this much pain and dysfunction not be a call to action for all religious, political, community, and mental health leaders?
"I don't intend this as a hollow rant. It is time (past time) for radical action #Baltimore
*I did not name anyone to call them out or to exclude others. They are simply the first names that came to mind on the subject. What is needed is a massive, citywide, effort. *
