Pair charged after allegedly exposing child to meth smoke

EVERETT — Felony child endangerment charges have been filed against a Lake Stevens couple who allegedly smoked meth while an 11-month-old baby was with them in their vehicle.

The girl’s mother, 22, and her half-brother boyfriend, 35, were charged Thursday with one count each of child endangerment with a controlled substance.

The Herald is not naming the pair to protect the identities of the woman’s children, including two who are of school age. Child Protective Services is involved.

ADVERTISEMENT
0 seconds of 0 secondsVolume 0%
Press shift question mark to access a list of keyboard shortcuts
00:00
00:00
00:00
 

“Investigation is ongoing to determine the extent to which all three children have been exposed to methamphetamine in the past,” deputy prosecutor Andrew Alsdorf said in Snohomish County Superior Court papers.

Marysville police were summoned by a 911 call Dec. 7 about a man and a woman smoking methamphetamine inside a Ford Explorer. The caller was worried that the young girl was being exposed to second-hand smoke from the drug. One of the witnesses asked the caller for help summoning police, in part because he was afraid he was going to punch the man who was smoking meth, court papers said.

A Marysville police officer found the pair in the Explorer, with the woman holding the girl. There were meth pipes in the vehicle. It was 38 degrees that night. The Explorer had no heat because it was out of gas. The girl, dressed only in a diaper, was crying and appeared to be cold and hungry, Alsdorf said.

Both adults allegedly admitted smoking meth that night.

The woman told police she’s addicted to the drug “and readily acknowledged that she is an unfit mother because of her current drug addiction,” court papers said. The man claimed that he’s been smoking meth for 20 years.

“He said it was wrong to endanger the children and there was no excuse for it,” the prosecutor wrote. “He explained that his childhood was a troubled one and that his father introduced him to methamphetamine at approximately 14 years old.”

The pair also told police that they have been in an incestuous relationship for about a half-year, despite having the same mother. The family dynamics are an aspect of the case because the child exposed to meth Dec. 7 is a member of the defendants’ family, adding a domestic violence element to the prosecution.

Both were locked up Friday in the county jail in Everett, their bail set at $150,000. Prosecutors also want court orders prohibiting both from contacting the woman’s three children.

Scott North: 425-339-3431, north@heraldnet.com.

Talk to us

> Give us your news tips.

> Send us a letter to the editor.

> More Herald contact information.

More in Local News

City of Everett Engineer Tom Hood, left, and City of Everett Engineer and Project Manager Dan Enrico, right, talks about the current Edgewater Bridge demolition on Friday, May 9, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
How do you get rid of a bridge? Everett engineers can explain.

Workers began dismantling the old Edgewater Bridge on May 2. The process could take one to two months, city engineers said.

Smoke from the Bolt Creek fire silhouettes a mountain ridge and trees just outside of Index on Sept. 12, 2022. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
County will host two wildfire-preparedness meetings in May

Meetings will allow community members to learn wildfire mitigation strategies and connect with a variety of local and state agencies.

Helion's 6th fusion prototype, Trenta, on display on Tuesday, July 9, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Helion celebrates smoother path to fusion energy site approval

Helion CEO applauds legislation signed by Gov. Bob Ferguson expected to streamline site selection process.

Vehicles travel along Mukilteo Speedway on Sunday, April 21, 2024, in Mukilteo, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Mukilteo cameras go live to curb speeding on Speedway

Starting Friday, an automated traffic camera system will cover four blocks of Mukilteo Speedway. A 30-day warning period is in place.

Carli Brockman lets her daughter Carli, 2, help push her ballot into the ballot drop box on the Snohomish County Campus on Tuesday, Nov. 5, 2024 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Here’s who filed for the primary election in Snohomish County

Positions with three or more candidates will go to voters Aug. 5 to determine final contenders for the Nov. 4 general election.

Students from Explorer Middle School gather Wednesday around a makeshift memorial for Emiliano “Emi” Munoz, who died Monday, May 5, after an electric bicycle accident in south Everett. (Aspen Anderson / The Herald)
Community and classmates mourn death of 13-year-old in bicycle accident

Emiliano “Emi” Munoz died from his injuries three days after colliding with a braided cable.

Danny Burgess, left, and Sandy Weakland, right, carefully pull out benthic organisms from sediment samples on Thursday, May 1, 2025 in Everett, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
‘Got Mud?’ Researchers monitor the health of the Puget Sound

For the next few weeks, the state’s marine monitoring team will collect sediment and organism samples across Puget Sound

Marysville School Board President Connor Krebbs speaks during a school board meeting before voting on school closures in the district on Wednesday, Jan. 22, 2025 in Marysville, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Marysville school board president to resign

Connor Krebbs served on the board for nearly four years. He is set to be hired as a staff member at the district.

Snohomish County deputy prosecutor Robert Grant gestures during closing arguments in the retrial of Encarnacion Salas on Sept. 16, 2019, in Everett.
Lynnwood appoints first municipal court commissioner

The City Council approved the new position last year to address the court’s rising caseload.

A heavily damaged Washington State Patrol vehicle is hauled away after a crash killed a trooper on southbound I-5 early Saturday, March 2, 2024, in Marysville, Washington. (Ryan Berry / The Herald)
Trial to begin in case of driver charged in trooper’s death

Defense motion over sanctuary law violation rejected ahead of jury selection.

Dick’s Drive-In announces opening date for new Everett location

The new drive-in will be the first-ever for Everett and the second in Snohomish County.

The peaks of Mount Pilchuck, left, and Liberty Mountain, right, are covered in snow on Wednesday, Feb. 12, 2025 in Lake Stevens, Washington. (Olivia Vanni / The Herald)
Take Snohomish County’s climate resiliency survey before May 23

The survey will help the county develop a plan to help communities prepare and recover from climate change impacts.

Support local journalism

If you value local news, make a gift now to support the trusted journalism you get in The Daily Herald. Donations processed in this system are not tax deductible.