A court has heard the harrowing details of a triple-0 call in which a toddler — who miraculously survived after ingesting a lethal dose of the party drug fantasy (GHB) — could be heard struggling to breathe.
The child's parents Sherrie Charlton-Wesley, 27, and Bradley Justin Staude, 29, appeared in South Australia's District Court on Wednesday, after each pleaded guilty to charges of criminal neglect over the March 2020 incident.
The court previously heard the parents did not call for an ambulance until at least three hours after their daughter had ingested GHB, despite immediately conducting an internet search with the phrase "how does GHB affect children?"
Prosecutor Lisa Dunlop said Ms Charlton-Wesley did not call paramedics until after 2am — about three-and-a-half hours after Mr Staude first searched on Google for answers.
Ms Dunlop said the triple-0 phone recording revealed the toddler was in a "dire state" and could be heard "breathing erratically in the background".
Ms Charlton-Wesley's lawyer, Brittany Armstrong, said her client had less culpability in the offending as she was not present when the child ingested the GHB, and did not know Mr Staude had searched on Google for some time before she called paramedics.
Ms Armstrong said while her client accepted she should have done more to tell ambulance staff of the illicit substance her child ingested, she was frightened of the repercussions.
"She did not do enough to ensure that authorities knew exactly what had happened to prevent further harm to the child," Ms Armstrong said.
"She has described the offending and her behaviour in relation to it as reckless and stupid and she should have known better."
Ms Armstrong told the court her client's traumatic childhood had led to a range of mental health issues later in life, including a recent diagnosis of borderline personality disorder — which Judge Joana Fuller requested proof of.
The court heard messages from Ms Charlton-Wesley's mobile phone, which was seized from the family home, revealed both she and Mr Staude had previously used methamphetamine and GHB.
The prosecution also tendered a number of photographs which show drug paraphernalia scattered in the main bedroom of the family's former home.
Mr Staude's lawyer, Taylor Johanson, said her client had significantly rehabilitated during his time serving home detention at a family member's property at Peterborough over the past year, and was abstinent from any drug abuse.
Ms Johanson also said the relationship between the former couple had been "mutually volatile", after Ms Charlton-Wesley's lawyer directed the court to previous allegations of domestic violence her client had reported to police.
Ms Charlton-Wesley, who also pleaded guilty to three counts of breaching bail conditions during the hearing, is housed in protective custody following threats made against her by other prisoners in jail.
Mr Staude's lawyer sought for him to be handed more lenient home detention, while Ms Charlton-Wesley's lawyer asked the court for a suspended sentence.
Ms Dunlop said, given the seriousness of the offending and the vulnerability of their child, an immediate imprisonment term was the only appropriate penalty for both defendants.
"[Children] are completely and utterly dependent on the adults that are responsible for their care, their safety and their wellbeing," she said.
"Both of these defendants have failed that child. But for the actions of the paramedics and doctors and nurses, this could have been a much more serious outcome."
Judge Fuller adjourned the matter to review material and hear further submissions next month.
