A Virginia second grade instructor sentenced to 2 years in jail for having medicine at college and being intoxicated in school took her baby together with her to purchase medicine only a few days earlier than she was arrested, prosecutors mentioned.
On Might 16, 2024, Candyce Carter had her husband take medicine to her at Spotswood Elementary College in Spotsylvania County, prosecutors mentioned.
Employees discovered her behaving erratically and mendacity on the ground of her classroom, with a bag of medication close by, prosecutors mentioned.
“That’s not one thing that simply goes away,” mentioned Stacey Linkenhoker, the mom of one of many college students within the class. “It’s not one thing he’ll be capable of overlook.”
“He requested me if she would quite do medicine than be his instructor, and that was not a straightforward query to reply,” she mentioned.
A number of days earlier than, Carter took her 2-year-old baby together with her to purchase cocaine and fentanyl, prosecutors mentioned.
On the day of her arrest, college workers additionally discovered Carter’s husband, Kristopher Carter, unconscious within the parking zone with their baby within the automotive, prosecutors mentioned.
Paramedics revived him with Narcan and evaluated all the scholars within the class to ensure they hadn’t been uncovered to the medicine.
“She may’ve doubtlessly killed a toddler,” Linkenhoker mentioned. “That’s not straightforward to reconcile as a mom.”
Candyce Carter pleaded responsible in February to 19 felonies, together with possession of medication and baby endangerment. Kristopher Carter additionally pleaded responsible to baby endangerment and distribution of medication.
With a number of Spotswood Elementary academics in courtroom Friday, a decide sentenced the Carters every to about two years in jail.
The Carters each apologized in courtroom for his or her actions, with Kristopher Carter saying he feels “fully ashamed” and Candyce Carter saying there are not any phrases to remove the stress she induced to the neighborhood.
“As a human being, I’ve loads of empathy for her, and I hope she does keep in restoration and I hope she did study from this example,” Linkenhoker mentioned.
Spotswood Elementary’s principal instructed the decide it’s been robust to recruit academics ever because the incident and so they’re working to guarantee households it’s nonetheless a secure place to ship their youngsters.
The Carters have separated, protection attorneys mentioned, and each have been attending habit remedy applications and taking up management roles there.
The Spotsylvania County Commonwealth’s Lawyer’s Workplace instructed News4 it believes exposing fentanyl to youngsters at school deserves a harder sentence, but it surely was as much as the courtroom to determine.
