Last Updated 2 weeks by Amnon J. Jobi | Amnon Front Page
Indianapolis parents arrested after 8-year-old dies from fentanyl intoxication
INDIANAPOLIS (WISH) — Two Indianapolis parents have been charged with felony neglect in the death of their 8-year old child.
The Marion County Coroner’s Office says she died from ingesting fentanyl. WISHTV.com first reported on the parents’ arrests on Friday morning.
Court documents says Lee Cooksey, 31, called 911 in May. Police arrived in his home near West 37th Street and North Capitol Avenue and found Cooksey carrying his unresponsive daughter to the front yard.
Emergency responders could not resuscitate the girl, who authorities identified as Gwendolyn, and she died at IU Health Riley Hospital for Children.
Pathologists said the purple shirt Gwendolyn wore had vomit on it. Her lungs were foamy, consistent with an overdose.
Cooksey and the child’s mother, Brittany Warr, 34, were charged with neglect of dependent resulting in death.
A neighbor, Lillie Glenn, said she witnessed what happened in May. “I was in shocked it was heartbreaking.”
Glenn said she saw police cars, and a man holding a child. “She was just limp. Her body was limp when they brought her out and placed her on the ground. It was really really sad.”
Glenn says she’s lived in this neighborhood for five years. “A lot of people here are not very friendly so I just stay to myself and just observed a lot of things.”
She said she’s had no interactions with Warr or Lee, but that night stays with her.
The family told police that Gwendolyn had a history of seizures.
Warr clarified that her child hasn’t taken her medication for a year or more.
Police say early that day,
Gwendolyn’s siblings told police that, before she died, the 8-year-old acted normal, even playing on a trampoline, but later got tired.
One child described Gwendolyn as “frozen” and “cold” just moments before Lee called 911.
Police said Gwendolyn, her five siblings, and the parents routinely slept on the floor in the living room.
On Friday, the house had open windows, and a pair of Jordan shoes out on the front yard. It was unclear whether anyone was living there.
Cooksey and Warr are scheduled to appear in Marion Superior Court 29 at 9 a.m. Tuesday. A Friday hearing for the pair was canceled Friday. The parents are currently being in Marion County jail.
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