Jeffrey Terakami and Kara Dugan are facing 2nd-degree murder charges in the death of their 8-month-old (Boulder City PD)
A Nevada couple is facing murder charges in the death of their 8-month-old child who died after coming into contact with fentanyl inside the home, police said.
Jeffrey Terakami, 36, and Kara Dugan, 31, are both being held at the Clark County Detention Center on 2nd-degree murder charges, records show.
Officers with the Boulder City Police Department and Boulder City Fire Department personnel responded to a residence on November 15, 2022, for a report that an 8-month-old child was unresponsive and not breathing, officials said in a press release.
“Upon arrival, BCFD Rescue personnel administered life-saving efforts and transported the child to St. Rose Siena Hospital (located in Henderson, NV), where the child was pronounced deceased,” police said.
The autopsy report from the Clark County Coroner’s Office revealed that the child’s cause of death was “a result of fentanyl toxicity” along with “recent methamphetamine exposure,” officials said.
“During their respective interviews, both parents disclosed that the child had been exposed to a mixture of methamphetamine and fentanyl after the father had spilled a bag of fentanyl mixed with methamphetamine on their bed, and later allowed the child to crawl on the same bed where the substances were spilled,” according to police.
Following an investigation, arrest warrants were obtained for Terakami and Dugan on the murder charges for allegedly exposing the child to controlled substances, causing his death.
The toxicology report was ultimately the deciding factor in charging the parents, police told Las Vegas NBC affiliate KSNV.
“It took several months to get the toxicology report back from the crime lab. Once the crime lab gave us the toxicology results, we had to forward those results to the district attorney’s office,” Boulder City Police Lt. Thomas Healing told the station. “[The district attorney’s office] had to make a decision whether they were going to prosecute or not. They ultimately decided they would. They issued two arrest warrants. The very next day, our patrol officers went down, located the two subjects, and placed them in custody.”
Terakami and Dugan were both arrested on June 16 and taken to the Clark County Detention Center where they are being held on $20,000 bond each.
Their next hearing is scheduled for July 18. It is unclear if they have retained attorneys.
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