San Jose father charged in infant daughter's fatal fentanyl overdose last May
SAN JOSE -- A San Jose man has been charged in the death of his baby daughter, whose body was found in an apartment littered with opioids earlier this year, the Santa Clara County District Attorney's Office said Friday.
An autopsy showed that 3-month-old Phoenix died from ingesting methamphetamine and fentanyl in May.
David Anthony Castro, 38, is charged with felony child neglect and possession of a controlled substance, a misdemeanor.
Castro's arraignment is scheduled for Monday at the Hall of Justice in San Jose. He faces a prison term if convicted.
"I can't fathom how a parent could recklessly cause the death of their own child," District Attorney Jeff Rosen said in a statement. "What I fully understand is our responsibility to hold that person accountable for this heartbreaking tragedy."
On May 13, San Jose police officers found Phoenix unconscious at a home on Spinnaker Walkway. Fentanyl, broken glass pipes and aluminum foil were found in the kitchen area of the apartment, prosecutors said.
A baby bottle containing liquid was located next to the glass pipes on the kitchen counter. Police also found Narcan, used to revive people from drug overdoses, the district attorney's office said.
Phoenix was later pronounced dead.
The mother of the infant was not at home when the baby died. She died of an overdose last month, prosecutors said.
In a high-profile case that has received international coverage, a day care operator and another suspect have been federally charged after a 1-year-old child fatally overdosed at a nursery in New York City. Police found fentanyl hidden in the room where the baby was napping.
