UTAH COUNTY, July 21, 2017 (Gephardt Daily) — Two parents in the Utah County Jail face new charges after officials say the pair dosed their newborn daughter with Suboxone — a narcotic used to treat opioid addiction — on the day she was born.
Colby Glen Wilde, 29, and Lacey Dawn Christenson, 26, both of Elk Ridge, will now face drug distribution and child endangerment charges, according to a news release issued by Utah County Sheriff’s spokesman Sgt. Spencer Cannon.
Wilde and Christenson were already in jail in connection with an alleged theft attempt reported June 26 at a local Walmart. On June 28, a person taking care of the couple’s residence and pets contacted officers to report illegal drugs stored haphazardly all over the residence.
The caretaker reportedly feared the children’s lives would be endangered by access to the drugs. The couple’s residence was also home to Christenson’s four children, boys ages 8, 4, and 2, and the infant daughter. Wilde and Christenson’s three shared children and her oldest boy were released into the custody of the oldest child’s father.
A search warrant was served on the couple’s residence on June 28, and things found included large amounts of illegal drugs and drug paraphernalia. Many substances were found where children could access them, including one found next to a sippy cup, the news release says.
Wilde and Christensen admitted to investigators that the crushed Suboxone found in their home June 28 was the same supply used to administer the drug to their newborn on April 9, the Utah County Sheriff’s Office statement says.
Christenson admitted she had used heroin and prescription drugs during her pregnancy, and knew the baby would be born drug-dependent, according to the Sheriff’s Office news release. Christensen and Wilde reportedly agreed to apply Suboxone, a painkiller, to the newborn’s gums in order to disguise her symptoms of drug addiction.
The June 26 charges against Wilde were filed after witnesses said he pulled items off the shelf at Walmart and carried them directly to customer service, asking for a cash refund. When a loss-prevention employee approached Wilde, the news release states, Wilde tried to flee the store with his 2-month-old daughter, who was strapped into a car seat.
Wilde dropped the child, according to the news release and although she remained in her car seat, it rolled several times before Wilde could retrieve it.
Once outside the store, Wilde slammed the baby and car seat into a pillar, then handed both to a stranger and fled in a car, the Sheriff’s Office statement says. A deputy in the parking lot, aware of the situation, stopped Wilde from leaving.
Wilde was then booked into the Utah County Jail for DUI, possession of heroin and methamphetamine, possession of drug paraphernalia, and no insurance. Spanish Fork Police later added charges of third-degree felony child abuse and theft.
Christenson, who was in the Walmart that day with her three sons, was arrested and booked into the Utah County Jail on an outstanding warrant.
