A YOUNG girl, distraught and in tears, called her grandparents after discovering her parents unresponsive on the bathroom floor of their Swansea home. The incident, revealed in court, highlighted the parents’ long-standing heroin addiction and the devastating impact it had on their child.
When police arrived, they found used heroin needles and other drug paraphernalia scattered across the floor. The parents, intoxicated and incoherent, appeared oblivious to their daughter’s whereabouts. Swansea Crown Court was told the couple had been heroin addicts for 20 years, with the mother admitting to officers, “I like getting off my head.”
The primary school-aged child, now under an interim care order, no longer lives with her parents, who are in their 30s and 40s.
The Incident
Prosecutor Caitlin Brazel recounted how, in January last year, the girl attempted to wake her parents but failed. Frightened, she phoned her grandparents, saying her mum and dad were “asleep” and she couldn’t wake them. The grandparents, staying on the phone to comfort the girl, advised her to seek help from a neighbour while they made their way to her.
The grandmother went to the child, while the grandfather headed to the family home. There, he found the girl’s mother in bed, speaking incoherently and seemingly unconcerned about her daughter’s welfare. The father was discovered in the bathroom amidst used needles and drug paraphernalia. When confronted, he blamed his condition on food poisoning. The grandparents took their granddaughter home and contacted the police.
Police Investigation
When officers arrived, the mother claimed her daughter was upstairs, unaware the child had left with her grandparents. She later attributed the situation to a “bad batch” of heroin. The father was found unresponsive, prompting an ambulance call. A search of the house uncovered numerous needles, drugs paraphernalia, and 100 bottles of methadone, a heroin substitute. Both parents were arrested on suspicion of child neglect.
During interviews, the mother admitted the couple used heroin daily, funding their addiction through her husband’s benefits and her cash-in-hand jobs. She insisted the drug did not impair her ability to care for her daughter, stating their routine involved putting the child to bed before using heroin. The father downplayed the incident, claiming his daughter “always blows things out of proportion” and blaming drowsiness on medication. He added that social services had previously advised them not to use heroin simultaneously.
Court Proceedings
Both parents pleaded guilty to child neglect. The court heard the father had prior convictions, including possession of heroin with intent to supply, while the mother had convictions for offences such as attempting to inflict grievous bodily harm and supplying heroin.
Defending the father, Regan Walters said his client was “deeply upset” by the distress caused to his daughter and ashamed of his actions. He described heroin addiction as a long-standing issue but noted the defendant had previously maintained sobriety for four years until the death of his father in 2014.
Harry Dickens, representing the mother, stated that on the day of the incident, his client was intoxicated from alcohol rather than heroin. He claimed she typically used heroin in the mornings for its “stimulating effect.”
Judge’s Remarks and Sentencing
Judge Geraint Walters described the case as “disturbing,” noting the child had found her parents “drugged-up or drunk to the extreme.” He told the couple: “Nobody, long-term, survives the effects of heroin addiction. Ultimately, there is only one outcome – declining health and an early death.”
He said the greatest punishment the couple faced was the loss of their daughter, who had been placed under a care order. He added that the chances of them regaining custody were “slim,” emphasising this as the consequence of betraying their child’s trust.
The judge sentenced both defendants to 12 months in prison, suspended for two years, and ordered them to complete rehabilitation programmes. The mother was also required to perform 100 hours of unpaid community work, while the father was deemed unfit for physical labour due to health issues.
