Left: Heather Opsincs. Right: Drug paraphernalia allegedly found at her Riviera, Florida, apartment following her son’s death (Riviera Police Department).
A Florida mother is behind bars after her 5-year-old son died from ingesting methamphetamine via his apple juice container.
Heather Opsincs stands accused of aggravated manslaughter in the death of her son, the Riviera Police Department said in a press release. Cops responded around 5:30 p.m. March 23 to an apartment in the 2400 block of Beach Court for a child not breathing. First responders took the boy, who has not been publicly identified, to the hospital where he later died.
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According to a probable cause arrest affidavit, investigators later learned that the boy was in the care of a babysitter when he grabbed a bottle of apple juice. The sitter told cops he took a drink but immediately spit it out, saying it “tasted weird.” He then went to the bathroom and returned a short time later “shivering and shaking.” The boy’s lips turned blue and he started the lose consciousness. The babysitter alerted Opsincs and did CPR.
Post Miranda, Opsincs said in an interview with detectives that she was in the back of the apartment complex cleaning out her cooler when she learned of her son’s condition, per the affidavit. She returned to her apartment to find her son having seizure-like symptoms with his pulse fading.
Opsincs admitted to buying edible mushrooms but denied talking any drugs. She tested positive for meth, but insisted it was a false positive. She was tested a second time and it again came back positive for meth, the affidavit said. Her son also tested positive for the drug.
A search of her apartment showed it was in “rather deplorable” condition with rotting food and trash throughout, officers wrote. Cops also collected six glass pipes that were positively tested for meth, the affidavit said.
Opsincs told officers her son was on the autism spectrum and was in need of special care. Cops later learned that the mother called poison control about two months ago after the boy licked bleach at the home. Detectives allege that her negligence and lack of a suitable living space led to her son’s death.
During a pretrial hearing Friday, a judge called the case “pretty egregious,” local NBC affiliate WPTV reported. He set her bond at $100,000. She remains at the Palm Beach County Jail. Her next court date is scheduled for April 22.
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