DRAPER, Utah – A couple in Utah is accused of child abuse after their two children, ages 3 and 4, allegedly tested positive for cocaine and THC, according to KSTU.
Katie Jennifer Blackham, 40, and Jacob Francis Sickler, 28, each face two felony counts of endangerment of a child and two misdemeanor counts of child abuse.
According to indictments for Blackham and Sickler, the Sandy Police Department received a child abuse and neglect report from the Utah Division of Child and Family Services, prompting an investigation at Sickler and Blackham’s home.
The indictments allege Sickler and Blackham openly used drugs in front of the two children. The indictment also said the children were losing weight, were often dirty and unkempt, and were fed marijuana to keep them quiet.
“In addition, [the 3-year-old] had suffered a broken leg and her parents failed to seek medical attention for 48 hours until family members insisted that she be seen by a doctor,” the indictments state.
Sickler and Blackham “openly bragged about running a drug distribution business out of their home, manufacturing brownies laced with marijuana, and distributed it to customers throughout Utah County,” the indictments say, citing the Child Abuse Neglect Report.
According to Draper Police, the two children were ordered removed from the home, and hair follicle testing on each of them turned up the positive drug test results.