Belleville IL woman accused of letting child consume fentanyl

A Belleville woman faces multiple felony charges after police say she allowed her 2-year-old child to ingest methamphetamine and fentanyl.

Ashley N. Parr, 40, was charged with one count of possession of less than 5 grams of meth, one count of reckless conduct causing great bodily harm and one count of child endangerment on Thursday, a news release from the sheriff’s department stated.

On Dec. 10, police were called to the 700 block of South 15th Street in response to a 2-year-old child having difficulty breathing. According to the release, Parr told police she and the child had both fallen asleep on the couch, with the child on her lap. When she woke up and rolled the child over, she told police the child was not breathing properly and gasping for breath.

Parr went to a neighbor’s house across the street for help, the release stated. When ambulances arrived, they performed CPR on the child and transported the child to Cardinal Glennon Children’s Hospital in St. Louis.

While investigating the scene, police said they found drug paraphernalia and illegal substances there, the release stated. Medical reports for the child indicated the child had consumed or had come in contact with meth and fentanyl, as they were both found in the child’s bloodstream.

On Wednesday, Parr was taken into custody by police and remained there as of Thursday night. Her bail was set at $50,000.

No other people were home at the time of the incident and the child is now in the custody of other family members, the release stated.