Meth Overdose Cause Of Death In 11-Day-Old Baby, Mother Charged With Murder

A meth overdose is the official cause of death of an 11-day-old baby born in Edmonton. Her mother has been charged with murder in relation to the meth overdose death of her daughter.

Michelle Rice gave birth to her daughter only 11 days before the child died of a meth overdose. The child was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital.

The name of the child who died of a meth overdose has not been released. The Edmonton Journal says that a written statement by the EPS states that there is no reason to release the name of the child as it will not serve to assist in the investigation of the meth overdose of the child. Additionally, there is no risk to public safety and their goal is to protect the privacy of families and victims.

According to CBC, the police were called to a residence near the address of 72nd Street and 83rd Avenue in Edmonton, Alberta, Canada, on March 29, 2017. This address is in the Kenilworth neighborhood of Edmonton. The baby was taken to the hospital by paramedics. She was pronounced dead shortly after arriving at the hospital but a cause of death could not be determined at the time. It was not known until later that the infant died of a meth overdose.

Edmonton mom charged with murder after baby dies of meth overdose https://t.co/atouN4QEDz pic.twitter.com/wz0lmteNMj

— HuffPost Alberta (@HuffPostAlberta) May 11, 2017

An autopsy was conducted by the medical examiner’s office. Toxicology tests were necessary to determine the cause of death in the newborn child, and it was eventually determined that the infant died of a meth overdose. The homicide section of the police department was contacted by the medical examiner’s office on April 6, 2017.

Michelle Rice, the 31-year-old mother of the child, was arrested on Thursday, May 11, 2017, and charged with second-degree murder in relation to the meth overdose of her daughter.

According to Global News, the EPS spokesperson, Scott Pattison, said that the baby could have ingested meth in one of two ways and “that’s either anally or orally.” He went on to say that the medical examiner’s explanation made him understand that a meth overdose of a baby “couldn’t have been administered… through a woman’s breast milk specifically.” The cause of the overdose has not been determined at this time and they are not able to reveal how the meth was ingested by the child.

Michelle Rice is a single mother who is in a relationship at the time. She also has a son. Her son has not been harmed and is being cared for by a family member. Pattison said that the thinks the boy is with his biological father but he is not sure if the infant that died of an overdose of meth is also the biological child of the same man.

Pattison continued to say that Michelle Rice was not someone that the police were familiar with. However, he was not able to say if the family and the young baby that died of a meth overdose were involved with Children’s Services at that time.

Pattison also commented on the fact that toxicology tests can take as long as six to nine months to complete and acquire, and that he was surprised that they came back so quickly this time. The toxicology tests revealed that the 11-day-old infant had a lethal dose of methamphetamine in her body and the meth overdose was what killed her.

At this time, police seek to speak to anyone that was in the house of the baby that died of a meth overdose. Friends or neighbors or healthcare workers who visited the mother and child between March 18 to March 29, 2017, are asked to contact the police. Any information could be helpful in the investigation.

The EPS can be contacted at 780-423-4567. If individuals have information but wish to remain anonymous, they can contact Crime Stopper by calling 1-800-222-8477 or submitting information online.

As Pattison said, the meth overdose of this 11-day-old infant is “horrific” and the investigators on this case will be working diligently, on behalf of an individual that was unable to defend herself, to make sure that there will be a successful prosecution.

UPDATE: See what Michelle Rice’s father and her landlord had to say.

UPDATE: Michelle Rice told the police she was sober and clean

[Featured Image by aluxum/iStock]