A two-year-old toddler died after ingesting her drug addict father's methadone, a trial has heard.
The child's mother, Sadie Douglas, has pleaded not guilty at Dublin Circuit Criminal Court to one count of wilful neglect, leading to the death of the child, on April 13th and 14th, 2016. Her partner, the child's father, is not before the court.
On Thursday, the court heard Ms Douglas' daughter, Heidi, who was born on August 8th, 2013, was found lying on her parent's bed dead at their home at Rathsallagh Drive, Shankill, Co Dublin on April 14th, 2016.
Judge Orla Crowe and the jury heard Ms Douglas and her partner stayed up for most of the night on April 13th and into the following day, looking at photographs on an old phone.
Ms Douglas allegedly told gardaí that on the morning of the 14th, she lay the child beside her at the top of the bed and fell asleep. The child's father fell asleep across the bottom of the bed.
Around 10.30am, the child is alleged to have eaten some crackers with her brother, but otherwise remained in the bed until she was discovered unconscious in the afternoon.
'Methadone toxicity'
Opening the case for the prosecution, Patrick McGrath SC said that after Heidi has been found by her father, apparently unconscious and unresponsive on the afternoon of the 14th, an ambulance took the child to Our Lady's Hospital for Sick Children in Crumlin. Despite receiving medical attention, the child died at the hospital.
Mr McGrath said a State Pathologist found Heidi had methadone in her system and concluded that her death was due to "methadone toxicity".
The methadone led to a brain disfunction because of lack of oxygen caused by a decrease in blood pressure through methadone poisoning.
It was not clear how the child came in contact with the methadone, Mr McGrath said, noting the child's father was taking the heroin substitute, which he obtained through a prescription from a chemist.
The barrister said that close to where the child was discovered, a plastic measuring cup was also found, in which there were traces of methadone.
The court later heard from garda witnesses that the father attempted to take the plastic cup and clean it but was prevented from doing so.
The same gardaí said the father's 500ml bottle of methadone was on top of a press in the kitchen when they called to the house after the child was taken to hospital and declared the property a crime scene.
Mr McGrath said Ms Douglas was charged because she was in charge of a child which she allegedly neglected wilfully, exposing her in a way that affected her well-being.
It is "a tragic and sad case that will generate sympathy", he said, but urged the jury to concentrate only on the facts of the case and not their feelings.
The trial continues.
