Glen Burnie Woman Sentenced After Toddler Dies From Fentanyl Overdose

GLEN BURNIE, MD — A Glen Burnie mother has been sentenced to 10 years in prison for the death of her 2-year-old daughter, who died from a fentanyl overdose.

Tiffany Lynee Carr, 35, pleaded guilty to one count of first-degree child abuse on Thursday for the death of her daughter, Nevaeh, the Anne Arundel County State’s Attorney's Office announced. A judge sentenced her to 25 years in prison, with all but 10 years suspended.

On Aug. 17, 2024, officers with the Anne Arundel County Police Department responded to a home in the 8000 block of Winding Road in Glen Burnie around 7:15 p.m. after receiving a call about an unresponsive 2-year-old girl.

When officers arrived, they found the toddler lying face down on a futon and also noticed a homemade smoking device lying on an end table near the child.

Nevaeh was taken to the hospital, where she died an hour later.

Investigators later determined the child had ingested fentanyl at some point between noon and 7:15 p.m. the day of her death. Her cause of death was determined to be narcotic intoxication.

According to prosecutors, Carr told investigators she consumed heroin and smoked crack cocaine the morning Nevaeh died. She explained she had been sleeping on and off, starting at 2 p.m., while the child napped on the couch. When Carr woke up at 7 p.m., she found the child unresponsive and called 911. She also performed CPR on Nevaeh and administered two shots of Narcan.

Crime scene investigators recovered the smoking device and several drug capsules from around the futon that tested positive for fentanyl, prosecutors said.

"To say this is a tragedy is an understatement," State’s Attorney Anne Colt Leitess said in a statement. "Sadly, not a single person was in the courtroom today to speak on behalf of this child because there was no one else she could count on other than her mother. (Carr's actions) were reckless, inexcusable and showed total disregard for the safety of her toddler."

Following her release, Carr must also serve 5 years of supervised probation and undergo any substance abuse evaluations, treatment, and mental health evaluations as ordered by the court.