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Last updated on Friday, April 12, 2013
(BLOOMINGTON) - Two Bloomington parents were arrested Thursday after toxicology reports following their infant’s death indicated the child had died from consuming five times the therapeutic amount of the anxiety medication Lorazepam.
21-year-old Brenda Lynn Jay and 31-year-old Joshua A. Lloyd were arrested and are being held in the Monroe County Jail on charges of neglect of a dependent resulting in death, possession of a controlled substance. More charges could be pending.
Both are being held without bond because they are on probation for previous convictions.
The Bloomington Police Department initially went to the couple's home on North Lindbergh Drive on March 23 when they received a call reporting a 4-month-old child was unresponsive.
BPD Sgt. Steve Kellams says the child, Wanda Evelynn 'Evie' Lloyd, was pronounced dead at the scene. An autopsy was performed but that report has not been released.
Kellams says , police continued to investigate the death, and toxicology reports were released Wednesday, indicating the infant tested positive for Lorazepam in levels in excess of five times the therapeutic amount.
Kellams says, neither Jay nor Lloyd could produce a prescription for the medication.
Police served a search warrant at the home and found two Lorazepam tablets on the living room table.
Neither Jay or Lloyd have admitted to giving the child the drug, but Kellams says because of evidence the couple were arrested.
The Herald Times reports, in February 2012, Jay pleaded guilty to neglect of a dependent by putting a child in a situation endangering his or her health. Through a plea agreement, charges of resisting law enforcement, disorderly conduct and illegal consumption of alcohol were dismissed. She served 93 days in jail, was placed on probation for two years and told to comply with directions from the state Department of Child Services.
Court records show that Jay was arrested for illegal consumption four times in 2011 -- in September, October, November and December. All of the charges were dismissed when she pleaded guilty to neglect on Feb. 14, 2012.
Lloyd pleaded guilty to driving while intoxicated in 2011. He received a 60-day suspended jail sentence, was ordered to complete 50 hours of community service work and was put on probation for 18 months.
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