A 37-year-old Kent man is facing an endangerment charge after a 13-month-old child in his care overdosed on methamphetamine in August, according to King County Superior Court documents.
Tracy Damon Lee was charged with one count of endangerment with a controlled substance and one count of second-degree unlawful possession of a firearm on Oct. 5. Lee’s bail is set at $50,000 and his arraignment is at 9 a.m. Oct. 13 at the Maleng Regional Justice Center.
In the morning of Aug. 23, a Kent police detective was notified of a suspected opioid overdose at a residence in Kent. The child was initially taken to an emergency room in Federal Way after displaying overdose symptoms. The child was administered Narcan, a drug which treats overdoses in emergencies by blocking opiate receptors in the nervous system, and the child’s vital signs “immediately began to improve,” according to charging documents.
Once the baby was in table condition, he was transported to Mary Bridge Children’s Hospital in Tacoma. Staff obtained a urine sample and a screening found the baby’s urine tested positive for methamphetamine, according to charging documents.
Lee, who is the father of the 13-month-old child and has shared custody, accompanied the child to the hospital with the child’s mother.
Police detectives went to Mary Bridge and interviewed the child’s mother and father. As detectives were walking Lee to a nearby room for the interview, Lee reportedly asked to use the restroom and remained inside the restroom for approximately 20 minutes, during which he was prompted several times to exit. After Lee left the bathroom, police allegedly found “a white plastic box containing approximately 30 suspected fentanyl pills hidden in the bathroom,” according to charging documents.
During his interview, Lee reportedly told police that the night before, the child knocked over a shot glass filled with “depression pills” and the pills spilled onto the ground, documents state. Lee said he thought he had picked up all of the pills but must have missed one, documents state.
When the child’s mother arrived about two hours later, she noticed the child’s breath was labored and shallow, and the two transported the baby to the emergency room.
After securing a search warrant, police searched Lee’s Kent residence and reportedly found guns, suspected controlled substances and drug paraphernalia, documents state.
“Some, but not all, of the concerning items found were methamphetamine pipes, burned aluminum foil and small and clear plastic baggies with white crystalline substance residue. These, along with open and uncapped containers of cleaning supplies, trash, rotting food and other dangerous items were littered about the apartment,” Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Caitlin Cushing wrote in the charging documents.
Law enforcement also found a loaded 9mm handgun, with a bullet in the chamber and no safety engaged, placed close to the ground on a side table. A stolen hunting rifle was reportedly found under the couch.
Lee’s criminal history includes several felony convictions including attempting to elude police and identity theft in 2015, and unlawful possession of a firearm in 2012.
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