• FreeAdvice has a new Terms of Service and Privacy Policy, effective May 25, 2018.
    By continuing to use this site, you are consenting to our Terms of Service and use of cookies.

Police get warrent and raid house like ****'s after taking child we love to hospital

Accident - Bankruptcy - Criminal Law / DUI - Business - Consumer - Employment - Family - Immigration - Real Estate - Tax - Traffic - Wills   Please click a topic or scroll down for more.

spawn200

Junior Member
What is the name of your state (only U.S. law)? Virginia

After my child was acting abnormal , I took him to the hospital, I told the nurse he might- , have ingested a pill I was prescribed, and that I was not sure what happened but I know he is not acting right- another possibility was he had a seizure or something. An hour later a sheriff comes into the hospital room my son Mason and I were in and interviews me – the sheriff says he is here to take a report which is a standard process , He ask me a few questions and l then leaves.

In reality the Stafford county sheriff got a search warrant which had Virginia law statute section 18.2-371.1 – listed on it, this is a felony for child abuse which includes a section which states I person willing give a person under 18 a dangerous drug or controlled substance. This was not true at all, plus his urine and bloodwork did not show anything in his system. As I will go into more detail later, the sheriff modify the search warrant based on items he saw when my wife returned home from her trip and told her she cannot enter her house without him because they were getting a search warrant- even though he did not have a search warrant at the time.
Details of events
Sunday November 9th.
Approximately 11:30 am I went up stairs to get my medicine
Returning down stairs I noticed my 10 month old had crawled into the kitchen and was getting into the cat food dish on the floor.
As I walked through our living room I sit my half a pill on one of the tables in the room so I could pick up my son and take him back into the living room
Next I put my child back on the floor in the living room by the couch where I was watching TV.
Next I got a bowl of baby snacks for my son Mason and sit my son down next to me to eat them.

Some time went by, my son crawling around and played while I watched TV.
Over the next 30 minutes or so -I believe what happened is our two kittens that always run around the house and jump on and off of the furniture and tables - knocked the pill off the table and onto the ground near where he was sitting and playing.
I am thinking my kid found the pill on the floor and ingested it, I say I believe he did because medical test (urine and blood work) at the hospital did not find anything in his system.

About 12:15-12:30 I noticed my son was getting cranky and it was around his typical nap time, so I took him upstairs and laid with him to put him down for his nap.
My son would almost fall asleep and then wake back up , he also was trying to sit up and was still acting cranky, This is usually to a point but this went on for like 10 minutes or more , then was like OK, maybe you are not tired enough and so we got up and the plan was to try again in a little while. My son was acting a little off- scratching his face with his bottle and his eyes looked red, he had contracted pupils, and was acting listless.
I started to wonder what was going on with him, he seemed to be getting worst , and was not acting normal, I started to think about what could be going on with him and though about the fact I had my medication downstairs but never took it and the cats were jumping around from the tables and couches where I left my medication.

Since he was starting to really acting a little off and listless at this point, I started to really get concerned. , I looked for my pill for maybe 2 minutes as I keep checking on my sons breathing and making sure he was ok. This was when I began to wondered if he had or was having a seizure.
Next I put him in the car seat and rushed him to the hospital.

At the hospital , I told a nurse what I thought might has happened and they took me and him straight back to a room in the ER.

A while later maybe one o clock or one thirty, I sheriff came in a interviewed me which they said was normal when I small child has had an incident like this. I thought nothing of it. I was only concerned about my son being ok.
My wife was out of town for the first time since our child’s birth, she had went to our roommates beach house for the weekend to get a break from our 10 month old. She stays home with him everyday. She cares for him while I work. I was happy that she had an opportunity to get away for a couple days to relax since she has not had a break away from him for the 10 months he has been with us.
I called my wife after I got to the hospital and told her what had happened and she immediately started home.
The plan was that s he was going to go by our house before heading to the hospital to get cloths for the baby and me because it was getting cold out and I rushed out of the house not prepared for the cooling night that was ahead.
When she arrived at our house at 304 Barrie Place, She was greeted by a sheriff at our door and was told she could not enter the house without him and that they were getting a search warrant. She wanted to get stuff for Mason and me was to cloths and items like his formula, toys etc and get to the hospital. She therefore went into our house and the sheriff enters the house with her. Note: She did not tell him it was ok to come in-the sheriff told her she could not go in without him- her sister can serve as a witness, Sara, my wife was only concerned about getting to the hospital to see out son, so she did not resist the sheriff.

Once inside the house the sheriff asked her to open things – he asked if there was guns or drugs in the house and other stuff. She told the truth. We have guns – all legal and she had marijuana paraphernalia- a pipe and a bong. ( she is 23 and I am 36, I do not smoke pot and she has on occasion.

Next she came to the hospital to be with Mason and me, the sheriff stayed at the house.
The sheriff then used information about the guns and paraphernalia and had that put added to the search warrant when they actually got hours later.

Later that night the detective called me and told us that they removed stuff from the house. I already know it was the guns and the paraphernalia.

When I got back to the house I was surprised to see that the cops had left some of my and my roommates guns and took some of them. As I mentioned before they also left a copy of the search warrant it had code section 18.2-371.1 – That code indicated that a willing gave my kid a drug or controlled substance – which is not true at all , I do not even know for sure that he got a hold of my medication.
The warrant t also listed ammunition on it which they left hundreds of rounds in the house.
A couple of days later – Wednesday,November 6th. The detective called me to meet him at the Stafford public safety building at 6:30 pm. During the interview he told me what they removed from the house and asked for my roommates name and phone number, he said he wanted to call him but to this day( almost three weeks later has not contacted him.
The Detective had took pictures of my house,- including lotion made by KY for” him and her” and some handcuffs, I thought that was a little weird but did not say anything at the time.
Basically I feel like the search was illegal, The statue on the search warrant was not true at all as I said before plus they told my wife she could not enter her house even they did not have a search warrant yet
During the search the cops only took some of our guns, they actual left 5 rifles in the house. Plus on the warrant they said they were looking for ammunition- they left hundreds of rounds left in various closets and drawer throughout the house.

I am wondering if this whole situation is legal or not and if I have grounds for a civil case. I really cannot afford an attorney and am hoping to find one pro-bono that will represent us if we have the grounds for a civil case .

Please adviseWhat is the name of your state (only U.S. law)?
 


Just Blue

Senior Member
Short answer: Yes, it was legal.

What was the medication? Did the doctors ever conclude what the issue was with your baby?
 

spawn200

Junior Member
The med was suboxone...

I have been in recovery for over 10 year from opiate addiction, I am a grad student, have a highly stressful job with a major software company and my doctor put me on suboxone to help ensure i did not relapse because of stress in my life.

The doctors at the hospital told me there was nothing in his system that test showed. If you don't mind me asking what do you mean it was a legal search they? the police told my girl they had to enter the house with her even though they did not have a search warrant. they should have said you cannot enter the house , not go in with her if it would only be suspect later.The search warrant code indicates child abuse which is totally untrue, first they found nothing in his system , and we love him more then anything- life itself , She wanted to get clothes and other stuff for us at the hospital , it was warm out when i took my son to the hospital , it was getting cold out after dark- BTW when i come into the house my child runs for me and kisses me- i cannot do anything other then take my shoes off for 30 minutes or he cry's his head off, In my mind he is the greatest kid on the planet. He is a very advance 10 month old he walks, says a few words and even the nurses told the detective that they could see him could reach on top of tables and pull stuff off of them - like my meds - if that is even what happened. Plus how can they get a search warrant for child abuse when there is nothing that indicated it, what ever happened to due process? I will take a lie detector test so will my wife, the sheriffs lied, they left guns in the house, have not pressed charges for 3 weeks , no one from child protection services has visited us, if they were really concerned about our child where are they, this is just a chain of BS that really makes me dislike the police, I watch cops every weekend, I am totally straight laced and this whole event is retarded. Anyway just bitching now but WTF- I was concerned about my child's health , I take him to the hospital and the **** cops try to say i hurt him WTF. Anyway, thank you for your post. Let me know if you have any other questions
 

Just Blue

Senior Member
I have been in recovery for over 10 year from opiate addiction, I am a grad student, have a highly stressful job with a major software company and my doctor put me on suboxone to help ensure i did not relapse because of stress in my life.

The doctors at the hospital told me there was nothing in his system that test showed. If you don't mind me asking what do you mean it was a legal search they? the police told my girl they had to enter the house with her even though they did not have a search warrant. they should have said you cannot enter the house , not go in with her if it would only be suspect later.The search warrant code indicates child abuse which is totally untrue, first they found nothing in his system , and we love him more then anything- life itself , She wanted to get clothes and other stuff for us at the hospital , it was warm out when i took my son to the hospital , it was getting cold out after dark- BTW when i come into the house my child runs for me and kisses me- i cannot do anything other then take my shoes off for 30 minutes or he cry's his head off, In my mind he is the greatest kid on the planet. He is a very advance 10 month old he walks, says a few words and even the nurses told the detective that they could see him could reach on top of tables and pull stuff off of them - like my meds - if that is even what happened. Plus how can they get a search warrant for child abuse when there is nothing that indicated it, what ever happened to due process? I will take a lie detector test so will my wife, the sheriffs lied, they left guns in the house, have not pressed charges for 3 weeks , no one from child protection services has visited us, if they were really concerned about our child where are they, this is just a chain of BS that really makes me dislike the police, I watch cops every weekend, I am totally straight laced and this whole event is retarded. Anyway just bitching now but WTF- I was concerned about my child's health , I take him to the hospital and the **** cops try to say i hurt him WTF. Anyway, thank you for your post. Let me know if you have any other questions

Please leave out the filthy language. It is offensive to me and also a violation of the TOS of this forum. You are not posting on MySpace.

I asked if the doctors ever reached a Dx regarding your child health that day...Please answer that question.
 

Ozark_Sophist

Senior Member
I sincerely hope child protective services follows up with more visits before the child gets injured. Ammunition all over the house. A ten month old child crawling around the house. Guns everywhere. Medicine left where the child can reach it.
 

spawn200

Junior Member
Um... Sorry , mt house is very safe.....

Their was no Dx. the doctor said they were unsure what happen and to follow up with our pediatrician, which we did. Ammo is not all over the house, I have a hobby room which is on a different floor and it is in closets and dresser drawers, our child does not go into this room actually he stays on a different floor then where I keep my guns at, I apologize if my aberrations upset you and will be more thoughtful in this and other reply's and I will leave the commentary out. CPS is welcome to visit our house, I just had a Emal from a civil rights attorney which is interested in talking to me about the case h I really would prefer I need to call him now.Hopefully he will agree that the search was illegal and will want to pursue a case. I will post the outcome unless i am advised not to.
 
Last edited:

CdwJava

Senior Member
what do you mean it was a legal search
He got a search warrant. A judge signed off on it. So, unless it can be shown that the affidavit for the search warrant contained outright lies, or, that it failed to properly describe the property and items sought, the search will almost certainly be good.

The deputy at the scene was securing the residence in anticipation of the search warrant (which they can do) and had every right to follow your wife inside to make sure she did not destroy or steal away evidence. He COULD have just said, "no". So, this is a non issue.

The deputy was free to ask her any questions he wanted. If she volunteered information that is her bad.

And the section under which you are apparently being investigated, simply leaving the medication within reach or access of the child could be sufficient to justify the charge. However, if the hospital had no proof of the ingestion of any medication or illegal drug, then I suspect THAT charge may disappear.

§ 18.2-371.1. Abuse and neglect of children; penalty; abandoned infant.

A. Any parent, guardian, or other person responsible for the care of a child under the age of 18 who by willful act or omission or refusal to provide any necessary care for the child's health causes or permits serious injury to the life or health of such child shall be guilty of a Class 4 felony. For purposes of this subsection, "serious injury" shall include but not be limited to (i) disfigurement, (ii) a fracture, (iii) a severe burn or laceration, (iv) mutilation, (v) maiming, (vi) forced ingestion of dangerous substances, or (vii) life-threatening internal injuries.

B. 1. Any parent, guardian, or other person responsible for the care of a child under the age of 18 whose willful act or omission in the care of such child was so gross, wanton and culpable as to show a reckless disregard for human life shall be guilty of a Class 6 felony.

2. If a prosecution under this subsection is based solely on the accused parent having left the child at a hospital or rescue squad, it shall be an affirmative defense to prosecution of a parent under this subsection that such parent safely delivered the child to a hospital that provides 24-hour emergency services or to an attended rescue squad that employs emergency medical technicians, within the first 14 days of the child's life. In order for the affirmative defense to apply, the child shall be delivered in a manner reasonably calculated to ensure the child's safety.

C. Any parent, guardian or other person having care, custody, or control of a minor child who in good faith is under treatment solely by spiritual means through prayer in accordance with the tenets and practices of a recognized church or religious denomination shall not, for that reason alone, be considered in violation of this section.​

I am totally straight laced and this whole event is retarded.
Then keep your medication in a place where the cats and the child cannot get to it. And, being so "straight laced", perhaps you should let your wife know that smoking dope at home is not responsible parenting, either.

- Carl
 

spawn200

Junior Member
I sincerely hope child protective services follows up with more visits before the child gets injured. Ammunition all over the house. A ten month old child crawling around the house. Guns everywhere. Medicine left where the child can reach it.
Um, not true at all , please re-read, and don't speculate. I said they left ammo in the house not that guns and ammo were all around the house. And my medicine was in my bathroom on a different , and the child could not reach it , gheez. plz. man .
 

Nativity

Member
Apparently your child can reach your medication when you decide to remove it from the bathroom and lay in on a table where a child could reach it.
 

outonbail

Senior Member
Look, what you need to do is realize that the police were doing what they are expected to do in cases like this,,, look out for the welfare of the child.

It was your carelessness in laying down your medicine that got the ball rolling in that direction.

The hospital staff are required to contact the police in situations like this. When they were informed that your wife was out of town and you were caring for the child on your own for the first time, they were probably concerned that you may have been abusive or given the child something thinking it would stop him from crying and go to sleep.

Under the circumstances, this is a reasonable assumption, especially since you said it was only half a pill.

So if the doctors didn't find any substances in his system and no signs of physical abuse, then count your blessings that your son didn't ingest your meds and let this whole thing be a good lesson. You have to pay attention when caring for an infant and children in general. It only takes a couple of seconds of not watching him and he could end up swallowing something or falling down stairs, getting a hold of a sharp object etc. So many children drown each year because a parent 's attention was distracted for only a minute,,, it is very sad.

From what you've posted you're not going to have a case against the police for illegal search or anything else.

The police were only looking out for the child, you should thank them for doing so. Then learn from the experience and move on.
 
Spawn200, taking the child to the hospital and letting them know that the child may have ingested that medication was the right thing to do.
I'm glad that the child hadn't ingested it.

You can't blame the police for doing their job.
The mother obviously was more concerned with the welfare of the child, then her own rights. Confronted with need to get into her house to get the childs warm clothes, it can be argued that the search started at the point when the shirif entered the house (she was asked to open things...and the request for the warrent was changed to add things after he entered the house).

I'm glsd that you put your childs wellbeing ahead of your own. Please take better care to secure your meds. Cats love to play with those med bottles and can chew through them.
 

Find the Right Lawyer for Your Legal Issue!

Fast, Free, and Confidential
data-ad-format="auto">
Top