Bail lowered for Kennewick mom charged after baby overdosed on fentanyl
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- Benton County charged mom with reckless endangerment after baby’s fentanyl exposure.
- Judge David Petersen lowered Boak’s bail from $50,000 to $25,000 during the hearing.
- Hospital staff administered naloxone and saved the baby.
A 1-year-old baby nearly died after allegedly getting into fentanyl that was on her mother’s bedside table.
Cierra S. Boak, 30, is charged with reckless endangerment, a gross misdemeanor, after allegedly creating a situation where the baby could ingest the synthetic opioid in February.
While the baby survived, the thought of what could have happened sent Boak into tears Wednesday during a bail hearing in Benton County Superior Court.
Boak was arrested in February and allowed to go into a 28-day drug treatment program. She returned to the Benton County Jail on April 9.
Her bail was set at $50,000, but she was hoping to be released in order to continue inpatient treatment outside of the jail, her attorney Scott Rodgers said.
Rodgers told Judge David Petersen that Boak frequently broke down when talking about what could have happened.
“The majority of the time is spent with her crying that she almost killed her baby,” he said.
Fentanyl is 100 times more potent than morphine and hundreds of times stronger than street-level heroin, causing overdose deaths to double in the Tri-Cities over the past 10 years.
Rodgers said the near tragedy would ensure Boak would follow the rules after her release.
Prosecutors argued it was too early for her to be released, and she has a pattern of not complying with court orders, including failing to show up for court hearings.
Petersen said he remembered reading the case in February, and said Boak’s addiction makes her a danger to the community.
However, Petersen appreciated that Boak had sought out treatment.
“Twenty-eight days is a good start on a life-long journey, but it’s just a start on a journey that hopefully you’re committed to,” he said.
He decided to lower her bail to $25,000.
Baby overdose
Boak allegedly used the drug about 10 p.m. Feb. 2, at a Seventh Avenue home in Kennewick, court documents said. When she woke up about 3 a.m., she discovered the baby limp, hardly breathing and unresponsive. Then she called 911.
When a Kennewick officer arrived, the child was breathing, but went limp as he carried her to the front door, court documents said. He laid the baby down and began providing CPR.
Medical staff then arrived and took the child to Kadlec Regional Medical Center.
Boak told the officer she had done drugs, which she left on the table, but was not sure if the child got into them, according to court documents.
While the baby was at the hospital, the officer discovered Boak’s history with fentanyl and told medical staff. They administered naloxone, a drug designed to treat opioid overdoses. The child responded.
Hospital staff found the baby’s urine tested positive for fentanyl.