NEWS

Parents answer accusation of heroin use with child

Elizabeth Murray
Free Press Staff Writer
Hannah Smith, 37, and Adam Legrand, 41, both of Franklin, denied one misdemeanor charge of denied child-cruelty each during court appearances in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington on Thursday, July 7, 2016. Authorities say the two ingested heroin in the presence of their 5-year-old son, whose screams alerted bystanders after the couple fell into semi-consciousness Tuesday evening while in a parked car in a downtown Burlington.

Several weeks before a northern Vermont couple were found semi-conscious from suspected heroin use with their young son in the back seat of a car in downtown Burlington, a day-care provider confronted the mother with suspicions she was abusing drugs.

Heidi Austin, who owns a child-care business in St. Albans, said her daughter is a recovered opiate addict, and she knew the signs when she spoke to Hannah Smith, 37, of Franklin.

Austin said Smith and her fiancee, Adam Legrand, 41, appeared "out of it," and Smith began making excuses why she was unable to pay for day care. Smith denied using drugs, Austin said.

"I told her, 'If I even have an inkling that you are using when you pick up your kid, I'm not going to allow him to leave with you,'" Austin told the Burlington Free Press on Thursday.

Now Smith and Legrand are facing criminal charges that accuse the couple of using heroin while their 5-year-old boy watched from the back seat. The parents pleaded not guilty Thursday in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington to a misdemeanor count of cruelty to a child under 10 years old.

Their son is staying with a relative.

Passersby found Smith and Legrand semi-conscious in their car on Tuesday while the vehicle was parked next to Pearl Street Beverage and Lakeside Pharmacy in Burlington. The boy was in the back seat screaming for help, according to court papers.

Police: Parents overdosed in car with child present

Several witnesses told police they saw Smith and Legrand slumped over in the front seat of the car. Later, Legrand became responsive and was able to get out of the car, but one witness said Smith's lips appeared to be turning blue, Burlington police Officer Eric Belleville wrote in court papers.

A child is carried toward a Burlington fire truck near Pearl Street Beverage in the city on Tuesday after police say two people ingested heroin with their child in the car.

The witness "advised the child was yelling, 'My parents aren't breathing, can you help?'" Belleville wrote. Belleville added that the two did not respond to their child's yelling or shaking them.

Legrand later told police he and his fiancee had used heroin, according to court documents.

"They both acted in a careless and negligent manner causing their son to panic and suffer," Belleville wrote in a sworn statement. "Due to the use of heroin which was admitted by both Smith and Legrand, they put themselves into a state in which they were unable to care for their child."

Belleville also wrote that the child was exposed to needles and heroin bags.

The couple were taken to the hospital, treated with Narcan, a drug used to reverse the effects of opiate overdoses, and cited to appear in court. Thursday, they were allowed to remain free on conditions. Judge Brian Grearson ordered that Legrand and Smith attend substance-abuse assessments at the Howard Center.

If convicted, Smith and Legrand face up to two years in prison and $500 in fines. They are next scheduled to appear in court in early August.

Hannah Smith, 37, of Franklin appears in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington on Thursday.  She is facing a charge of cruelty to a child after allegedly passing out after using heroin with her partner while parked with their child in the car.

Smith is allowed to have contact with her son only after submitting a written request to the court in advance and with supervision by the state Department for Children and Families.

Contact was restricted completely for Legrand after Grearson said a legal assessment must be made in Family Court that Legrand is the boy's father. The couple are not married, the judge said.

Brian Dodge, who served as the public defender for both suspects, said DCF is involved in the case, and the 5-year-old remains in custody of a grandparent.

After the hearing, Smith and Legrand walked quickly past reporters and shielded their faces with pieces of paper. Legrand said he had been trying to get help for his addiction for years.

"There's not enough resources to help people like us," Legrand said.

He declined further comment in the courthouse and did not return a phone call from the Burlington Free Press later Thursday.

Adam Legrand, 41, of Franklin appears in Vermont Superior Court in Burlington on Thursday.  He and his partner, Hannah Smith, not pictured, are facing a charge of cruelty to a child after allegedly passing out after using heroin while parked with their child in the car.

Child-care provider Austin said she's seen first-hand how opiate addiction can "tear a family apart." She hoped Legrand and Smith receive the help they need so they can reunite with their son.

"He is such an amazing little boy," Austin said. "This little boy deserves so much more than what he saw. Any kid does. It's heartbreaking."

This story was first posted on July 7, 2016, and updated later in the day. Contact Elizabeth Murray at 651-4835 or emurray@freepressmedia.com. Follow her on Twitter at @LizMurraySMC.

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