Insets, left to right: Courtney M. Delaney, Joshua L. Sanders (Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office). Background: The middle school where their daughter allegedly overdosed (Google Maps).
A 34-year-old mother and a 40-year-old father in Florida are behind bars after their middle school-aged daughter nearly died in class, allegedly overdosing on fentanyl she took from the family bathroom.
Courtney Marie Delaney and Joshua Lee Sanders are each charged with one count of child neglect resulting in great bodily harm and two counts of neglect without great bodily harm, court documents show.
According to a probable cause affidavit, deputies with the Charlotte County Sheriff’s Office at 9:19 a.m. on March 10 responded to L.A. Ainger Middle School in Englewood regarding a female student who was not breathing. Upon arriving, first responders found the student — who is not identified in court records — unresponsive on the floor of a classroom while the school nurse performed CPR, the affidavit says.
A deputy reportedly administered a single dose of nasal Narcan, which produced a “positive response.” Paramedics reached the school shortly after and transported the child to a local hospital for further evaluation.
The nurse told investigators that another student had run to her office and began “knocking on her door,” the affidavit says. When she opened it, the student apparently directed her to the classroom where the girl was lying on the floor. The nurse said she felt a weak pulse and began CPR with another staff member, performing four rounds before deputies arrived, the affidavit says.
While still at the scene, the victim allegedly told a first responder she had seen her father consume narcotics and was “curious about it.”
“[The victim] also stated that she located an essential oil bottle containing a white powder. [She] took the bottle to school and consumed the powder in the bathroom near her classroom. A short time later, she started to feel funny,” the affidavit says. “It should be noted that students informed school staff that they had been informed by [the victim] that she snorted a white powder off the toilet paper holder in the bathroom stall and had walked out of the bathroom with a white powder on her nose.”
Authorities searched the victim’s backpack and reportedly found an essential oil bottle containing a substance that field-tested positive for fentanyl.
When investigators called Delaney about the incident, she allegedly said she had just “got into an argument” with Sanders, the father, “over some missing fentanyl” and “kicked [him] out of the bedroom.”
In a post-Miranda interview, Delaney said Sanders had been living in her home with her three children for about a year and during that time she had found what she suspected to be narcotics on numerous occasions.
“[Delaney] said that she would throw the narcotics away and not say anything to [Sanders] about it. [She] knew Joshua to be a narcotics user and stated that his drug of choice was fentanyl,” the affidavit says. “[Delaney] then went on to say that after throwing away what she believed to be narcotics, she would act as if she had no idea what happened to them when [Sanders] brought up the missing narcotics.”
The previous morning, she said, she and Sanders argued when he could not find a bottle of essential oils. Delaney said she genuinely did not know what happened to the bottle at that time.
Investigators said Delaney clearly made “no effort” to remove Sanders from the home despite him bringing narcotics around her children.
The victim later told police her father uses the same bathroom as her and her siblings and on the morning of March 10, she swiped a bottle marked “FENT,” which she knew contained her father’s narcotics. She added that he “regularly” left narcotics “within reach of all three children in the residence.”
The victim said she meant to give the bottle to her mom, but forgot and brought it to school instead. Before first period, she said, she went into the bathroom and tried a little bit and went to class with the help of her best friend. The last thing she allegedly remembered was taking out her notebook.
Sanders allegedly admitted to knowingly leaving the narcotics where his daughter could access the bottle and asked police to inform that child that he was sorry.
“First and most importantly, I am glad to hear that the student will make a full recovery,” Sheriff Bill Prummell said in a statement. “This could have ended very, very differently if not for the fast actions taken by the school nurse and other staff, as well as my deputies. It is inexcusable and unforgivable that this child was able to access this poison so easily, and that’s why these arrests were made. I thank God that we were able to intervene before something even worse happened.”
Delaney was released after posting bond of $25,000. Sanders remained in custody on bond of $450,000 as of Monday afternoon, records show.
The couple are due to appear in court for their arraignments on April 20.
