Drugs/Therapy

Ohio Parents Arrested After Young Boy Overdosed On Heroin

By Anne Collins | Update Date: Feb 20, 2017 07:50 AM EST

Parents from Berea, Ohio have been charged with felony after their 8-year-old son overdosed on heroin. Danielle Simko and Charles Dowdy appeared in a Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court on Friday. The grand jury handed out felony charges of drug possession and endangering children.

Dowdy and Simko have been held on $150,000 bond. They first appeared on January 11 and their next hearing is set for 9 a.m. Feb. 22 before Cuyahoga County Common Pleas Court Judge Peter Corrigan.

Ohio and the nation struggle to battle the growing issue of fentanyl and heroin overdose. Charles Dowdy said he found his son unresponsive on his bed at their home in Miltion Street in Berea at around 10:30 p.m. Dowdy immediately called 911 when he saw his son was not breathing and his lips had turned blue.

Simko met with the responding police officer outside their home. When the police entered they found Dowdy frantically attempting to resuscitate his son according to CDA News. The officer took over and found a weak pulse, the ambulance arrived and the boy was rushed to the Southwest General Medical Center.

According to WSB-TV Altanta, the police found drugs and needles at their home. The medical staff discovered a small bag of heroin and prescription pills hidden inside a toy watch kept inside the boy's socks. They took a urine test and the boy showed positive for heroin in his system.

Dowdy admitted he had used drugs earlier in the day. Dowdy and Simko were both arrested at the hospital.

Both Dowdy and Simko have their own attorneys. The Public Defender's Office of Cuyahoga County is representing Dowdy. Simko is being represented by Gary Seewald.

The boy is now in the care of relatives and has recovered well said a spokesperson for the police department. He is the youngest overdose victim in Berea.

The death rate for heroin, fentanyl and other types of opiates had increased from 64 deaths in 2011 to 517 deaths in 2016 according to the Cuyahoga County Medical Examier's Office. In January there were 46 fentanyl and heroin overdoses reported.

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