BOY, 4, HAD HIGH LEVELS OF COCAINE

TORONTO -- A four-year-old boy had enormously high levels of cocaine in his
system, an expert testified Wednesday at the trial of a woman accused of
feeding him crack and the prescription drug Ritalin.

"It is in the hair and it is a result of consumption of cocaine," said
Julia Klein, a pharmacologist at the Hospital for Sick Children, which
conducted tests on some hair samples.

"For a child it's high. Normally you would see that in adult chronic users
of cocaine."

Klein said the cocaine levels indicated use of three times a week for at
least three months.

She said the findings also indicate the boy ingested the drug, adding the
levels were too high to be from one-time accidental use or from breathing
second-hand smoke.

Joyce Hayman, 30, has pleaded not guilty to two counts of criminal
negligence causing bodily harm and administering a noxious substance.

The boy was seized by the Children's Aid Society on June 6, 1996.

Mr. Justice John Hamilton has imposed a publication ban on any evidence
that would identify him.

In earlier testimony, Hamilton was told that Hayman admitted to a hospital
doctor she gave the boy 40 milligrams a day of Ritalin, which she bought
off the street after failing to get a doctor to prescribe it.

The boy's father testified the child was hyperactive and speech-delayed and
agreed with giving the Ritalin. He added Hayman, a crack addict, didn't
take drugs in front of the tot and would not give the boy crack.

Checked-by: Richard Lake