Mother faces charges after her baby died of a possible fentanyl overdose
A Santa Cruz County mother is facing criminal neglect charges after her 18-month-old baby died of a possible fentanyl overdose.
On July 28, the Santa Cruz Police Department responded to Dignity Health Dominican Hospital for a report of a deceased infant who was brought in by her mother, 38-year-old Korisa Woll, according to a news release.
When officers arrived at the hospital they met with Woll and observed the deceased infant.
The department’s investigators who were immediately called in learned the child passed away while in Woll’s care at their residence in the city of Santa Cruz.
The county coroner took possession of the deceased child, and the results of a complete autopsy are pending. But according to the district attorney’s office, early autopsy results showed a “presumptive positive” for cocaine and fentanyl in her system. An official cause of death has not been completed.
In Bakersfield, a 2-year-old died from acute fentanyl toxicity, and his father has been charged with murder. In California, there were 11 fentanyl-related deaths for children younger than 5 in 2023, according to preliminary data.
Woll was later booked into the Santa Cruz County Jail on two charges of felony child endangerment, one with enhancement for great bodily injury to a child younger than 5 years old, plus an additional misdemeanor for evidence destruction, the Mercury News reported.
The Santa Cruz County District Attorney’s Office did not respond to The Times’ request for comment before publication.
The district attorney’s office told the Mercury News the baby, who they are referring to as “Zhorriah Doe,” was found dead Sunday in a bed with her sleeping 4-year-old brother.
Santa Cruz police Det. Robert Caposio said that Woll had taken her child “to a known drug area and a residence therein.” Woll’s alleged neglect of her child “directly led to her death,” the Mercury News reported.
The Mercury News reported that Woll, her children and her baby’s father were recently homeless until the father died of a fentanyl overdose in April. Woll took her children to live with her parents in Scotts Valley after his death until July 16. Woll’s living situation beyond the July date is unknown.
The district attorney office’s investigation is ongoing and Woll’s initial arraignment at the Santa Cruz County Superior Court was delayed until Aug. 7.
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