On October 1, 2022, first responders were dispatched to an apartment on Auburn Street in Hartford, Connecticut, for a 14-month-old boy who was unresponsive and not breathing. The child was transported to Connecticut Children's Medical Center where he was declared deceased. An autopsy revealed fentanyl in the child's blood at a level higher than what is typically used for adults for medical purposes. Darrell Hundley, 45, a friend of the child's mother who lived in the apartment and helped watch her children, admitted to leaving the apartment on the evening of September 30 to use fentanyl, returning around 2 a.m. with wax paper sleeves from his drug use in his pockets. He disposed of the sleeves in the kitchen trash can, which later tested positive for fentanyl, and then went to sleep on the other end of the couch where the child was sleeping. The child's mother found her son unresponsive the following morning around 10:30 a.m. and began CPR. Police concluded that Hundley had exposed the child to fentanyl after disposing of the wax paper sleeves. Hundley was charged with second-degree manslaughter and risk of injury to a minor.
Contexts/Conditions
Is there any mention of child drug ingestion or overdose?
Both documents explicitly describe a fatal fentanyl overdose by a 14-month-old child. Document 1 (courant.com) states "the fatal overdose of a 14-month-old boy who ingested fentanyl." Document 2 (stamfordadvocate.com) states "An autopsy later revealed that there was fentanyl in the child's blood at a level higher than what typically would be used for adults for medical purposes."
Is there any mention of a drowning incident (either intentional or accidental)?
Is there any mention of a firearm incident?
Is there any mention of inappropriate supervision (e.g., child wandered off and drowned)?
Is there any mention of inflicted injury? (e.g. slapped, punched, kicked, choked)
Is there any mention of malnutrition, starvation, or dehydration?
Is there any mention of medical neglect?
Is there any mention of a motor vehicle crash or incident?
Is there any mention of a murder-suicide incident?
Is there any mention of outdoor elements (including hot car deaths)?
Is there any mention of prenatal substance exposure (including fetal alcohol syndrome or neonatal abstinence syndrome)?
Is there any mention of sexual abuse?
Is there any specific mention of shaken baby or abusive head trauma?
Is there any mention of prolonged abuse or torture (including restraints, captivity)?
Is there any mention of an unsafe sleeping environment?
The stamfordadvocate.com article states that the 14-month-old child was sleeping on a couch: "her son was still lying on the couch from the night before" and "Hundley said he then went to sleep on the other end of the couch from the child." A couch is generally recognized as an unsafe sleeping environment for a child of this age per pediatric safety guidelines, though the text does not explicitly characterize it as unsafe and the death was caused by fentanyl exposure rather than sleep-related factors.
Individuals Involved
Was an adoptive parent or guardian involved in the death?
Was a biological father involved in the death?
Was a biological mother involved in the death?
Was a day care worker, babysitter, or nanny involved in the death?
The stamfordadvocate.com article states that the child's mother "allowed him to live with her and watch her children." On the evening before the child's death, Hundley was caring for the child while the mother was out, as evidenced by: "she returned home around 8 p.m., at which time Hundley told her that her son already was asleep." While Hundley was not a professional babysitter, he was informally serving in a babysitting/caretaking role.
Was a female paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., girlfriend, stepmother)?
Was a foster parent involved in the death?
Was a male paramour or friend involved in the death (e.g., boyfriend, stepfather)?
The stamfordadvocate.com article describes Darrell Hundley as a male friend of the child's mother: "She told police she'd known Hundley since they were both younger and allowed him to live with her and watch her children." Hundley was charged with second-degree manslaughter and risk of injury to a minor in connection with the child's death. He is not described as a romantic partner or relative, but rather as a friend who lived in the household.
Was another adult relative involved in the death? (e.g., grandfather, aunt)
Was a sibling involved in the death?
Child Characteristics
Was the child adopted?
Was the child homeschooled (including "cyberschooling") or taken out of school?
Was the child in foster care at the time of the incident?
Was the child living with relatives at the time of the incident (but not parents)?
Is there any mention of a neurological developmental child disability? (e.g., autism, intellectual disability, nonverbal)
Is there any mention of a physical child disability? (e.g., feeding tube)
Is there any mention of prematurity or low birthweight?
Is there a history of child protection reports prior to death (for this child or siblings)?
Does the child have a history of foster care (but not in care at time of incident)?
Is there a history of a sibling death (separate incident from this death)?
Parent/Caregiver Factors
Was an adult charged or arrested for the child's death?
The stamfordadvocate.com article states: "Hundley is charged with second-degree manslaughter and risk of injury to a minor. He is being held in lieu of $350,000 bail and is scheduled to appear in Superior Court in Hartford Jan. 5." The courant.com article also states: "A Hartford man faces felony charges in connection with the fatal overdose of a 14-month-old boy."
Is domestic violence by the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is there any mention that the death occurred in a temporary shelter or while homeless?
Is an intellectual disability of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is the mental health of the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is a history of arrests or criminal charges for the parent/caregiver referenced?
Is substance use by the parent/caregiver referenced?
The stamfordadvocate.com article explicitly states that Hundley, a caregiver who watched the children, used fentanyl: "Hundley admitted that when the child's mother returned to the apartment around 8 p.m. on Sept. 30, he left the apartment to use fentanyl and returned around 2 a.m. He had wax paper sleeves in his pockets from the fentanyl and disposed of them in the kitchen trash can."
Notable Details
The stamfordadvocate.com article contains notable details about the investigation timeline: "Hundley didn't want to speak with police immediately following the child's death, because he wanted to know the outcome of the autopsy first, the affidavit states. Police didn't interview him until July." This represents a roughly 9-month delay between the child's death in October 2022 and Hundley's police interview, during which time a key suspect in the child's death remained uninterviewed. Additionally, the mechanism of exposure is notable — the child was fatally exposed to fentanyl through residue from wax paper sleeves disposed of in the kitchen trash can, illustrating how secondhand contact with drug paraphernalia can be lethal to a young child.
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