CHILDREN'S DEATHS NEARLY EPIDEMIC

Social Issues:Methamphetamine is the drug of choice among woman of
child-bearing age,prosecutor says.

While cases of babies dying from drug-tainted breast milk are
rare,Orange County authorities said Tuesday that a rising tide of
methamphetamine use is harming more children.

Deputy District Attorney Elizabeth Henderson said her office has seen
an increase in Methamphetamine-related deaths of children, including
stillbirths and spontaneous abortions.

"It is near epidemic proportions," she said. "Unfortunately this has
become the drug of choice for women of child-bearing age. They take it
almost like a diet pill. They think it will keep them wired and thin.
The problem is, it is so dangerous."

Cynthia Ann Pinson pleaded guilty Tuesday to felony child endangerment
in the death of her 6-week-0ld son. Prosecutors had contended that she
passed a lethal dose of methamphetamine to him through her breast milk.

In another case, methamphetamine residue was found in the baby bottle
of an Anaheim infant who died in July 1996. Prosecutors have filed
murder charges against Steven D. Bierly and Brandy Wilson in the death
of their 8-week-old son, Steven Ray Bierly.

Such cases are difficult to prosecute because of the complicated
science involved and jury sympathy for a grieving mother, said Kathy
McCarrell, executive director of the Orange County Child Abuse
Prevention Center.

"I applaud the conviction," McCarrell said. "This was a conscious act
against her child. It sends the message that this won't be tolerated."

New mothers with a history of drug abuse are counseled before they
leave the hospital that they could pass drugs through breast milk,
McCarrell said.

"We're here to help these mothers," McCarrell said. "There are other
options."

In response to such cases, the Orange County District Attorney's
Office, the Department of Children's and Family Services and local and
state police have a program, Drug Endangered Children, which sweeps
into action each time detectives find children at a methamphetamine
lab in Orange County. It began in November with the help of a
three-year $775,000 grant.

The children are treated at Children's Hospital of Orange County,
where they are tested for signs of methamphetamine poisoning. A county
social worker starts an investigation of the child's home to build
possible criminal charges against parents, and children are placed in
protective custody or with relatives.

Checked-by: Rich O'Grady