A six-year-old autistic boy in Fairmont, West Virginia, was taken to hospital after he jumped from a second-story apartment window, with police later learning that he had tested positive for cocaine.
The incident happened Monday in the city, located roughly 90 miles south of Pittsburgh, and initially appeared to investigators to have been an accident.
The boy’s mother, 30-year-old Stevie Thibodeaux, has since been charged with felony gross neglect of a child creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury.
Police Initially Treated the Incident as an Accident
A Marion County Sheriff’s Office deputy was dispatched to the apartment complex after receiving a report that the child had fallen from a window.
When the deputy arrived, he found an open second-floor window and its screen lying on the ground. Thibodeaux told the officer that she had been asleep when her son jumped from the window.
She also explained that the boy is autistic, prompting the deputy to ask how she normally kept him safe.
According to the criminal complaint, Thibodeaux showed the officer childproof locks installed on doors that were intended to prevent her son from wandering outside.
Based on the information available at the time, the deputy left the property believing the incident had been an unfortunate accident.
Hospital Test Changed the Investigation
The investigation took a more serious turn the following day when the Marion County Sheriff’s Office was notified that the boy had tested positive for cocaine at Ruby Memorial Hospital.
Hospital staff had contacted Child Protective Services after receiving the test result, and CPS subsequently alerted law enforcement.
The child remained under medical care for evaluation. His condition was not publicly known as of Thursday afternoon.
Search Warrant Leads to Drug Evidence
Using the hospital’s test results as part of their investigation, deputies obtained a search warrant for Thibodeaux’s apartment.
During the search, officers reported finding a white plate containing what the criminal complaint described as a white powder substance.
They also discovered a food stamp card and a device described as a “tooter,” a straw commonly used to snort drugs.
Thibodeaux was not at the apartment when deputies began searching it. She returned while the search was underway and was arrested.
Mother Allegedly Admitted Using Cocaine at Home
According to the criminal complaint, Thibodeaux later told investigators that she used cocaine inside the apartment.
She allegedly said she used the white plate found by deputies to consume the drug and had subsequently left it inside a closet.
Police allege that her son was able to access the area where the plate had been left, raising questions about how the child came into contact with the cocaine.
Mother Remains in Jail on Bond
Thibodeaux was taken to the North Central Regional Jail, where records show she is being held on a $5,000 bond.
She does not appear to have entered a plea as of Thursday.
The charge of gross neglect of a child creating a substantial risk of death or serious bodily injury is a felony under West Virginia law.
A conviction can carry a sentence of up to 10 years in prison.
The allegations contained in the criminal complaint have not been proven in court, and Thibodeaux is presumed innocent unless and until she is convicted.
