Local News in Brief : Father of Girl Who Ate Cocaine Freed
A felony charge was dismissed Tuesday against a father accused of giving cocaine to his 2-year-old daughter, who suffered a seizure after eating the drug at her Mid-Wilshire day-care center.
Los Angeles Municipal Judge Emily Stevens dismissed the felony count at the request of county prosecutors, who said toxicological tests could not prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the man had given the cocaine to the girl.
The father, Patrick Smalling, 24, who had been held in lieu of $13,000 bail since his arrest Dec. 15, was released, Deputy Dist. Atty. Penny Schneider said.
The child, hospitalized for a short time, is now in a foster home, Deputy Dist. Atty. Penny Schneider said.
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