A 36-year-old Kansas City woman was charged after her two-year-old son was found dead with drugs in his system.
The Jackson County Prosecutor's office said Thursday that Michaela Chism was charged with two felony counts of endangering the welfare of a child. Police found the child dead on Wednesday in a home strewn with apparent drugs and drug paraphernalia, reported ABC News.
The Kansas City Police Department responded to reports of the child, according to court records. According to 15 WMTV nbc15.com, first responders reportedly found the two-year-old unresponsive and covered up on a bed. Officers shared that they removed a blanket and saw the toddler not moving. He also had discolored feet. The officers also said that seeing a raised and discolored scab on the boy’s back, it indicated a possible infection. The boy’s body was taken to Children’s Mercy Hospital, said authorities. At the hospital, lab results indicated that he had amphetamines in his system.
Police said that another young boy was found at the home. He also tested positive for amphetamines.
Chism acknowledged that while living at the home, she took drugs, including methamphetamine and fentanyl, a probable cause document said. According to the statement, she said that one evening she noticed that her son was not moving. Then she realized that he was dead and she moved him from a couch to the bed after cops first arrived for a welfare check at the home. According to the statement, she was unable to tell police what day she found the boy or when she moved him to the bed.
Authorities said that after they obtained a search warrant, detectives found drug paraphernalia throughout the residence. Crystal-like substances and several prescription pill bottles were also found in the house.
KMBC News 9 ABC reported that one unnamed source, who was interviewed by police, said that Chism and her husband frequently took heroin and methamphetamine.
In the case that remains under investigation, the mom has been charged with first-degree child endangerment and first-degree child endangerment involving drugs. While the investigation is continuing and further charges are possible, prosecutors requested a $150,000 cash bond.
Online court documents have not named a lawyer to speak for Chism.
