[LA] 2-year-old died after eating kratom, coroner says, fueling a push to ban the herbal extract - Shroomery News Service

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veggie

Registered: 07/25/04
Posts: 16,708

[LA] 2-year-old died after eating kratom, coroner says, fueling a push to ban the herbal extract

#28171083 - 02/03/23 05:27 PM (1 month, 23 days ago)

2-year-old died after eating kratom, coroner says, fueling a push to ban the herbal extract
February 1, 2023 - The Advocate

Around 1 a.m. on April 17, 2021, Laci Kanada finished taking a bath and found her two-year-old daughter had stopped breathing, police reports say.

She rushed her to the bathroom and let the water run over body, trying to wake her, and attempted CPR, but it was too late: Elizabeth Kanada-Martin was taken to the hospital, where she was pronounced dead, the reports say.

A coroner's report says the girl died from poisoning after ingesting combined drugs: “An extraordinarily high, lethal level” of tianeptine, an antidepressant drug that acts like an opioid — and the herbal extract kratom. Described in the report as a “psychoactive botanical substance,” the coroner wrote that kratom “affects the same opioid brain receptors as morphine.”

Elizabeth's death, which had not previously been disclosed to the public, brought negligent homicide charges for Kanada, to which she pleaded no contest. And now that officials are discussing it publicly, the case has brought more tragic attention to two burning issues in Livingston Parish and Louisiana: the death of toddlers under the watch of the state child welfare agency and a debate over banning kratom.

Advocates of kratom argue it can help relieve pain and serve as a safer alternative to drugs like opioids. But law enforcement officials say kratom is being used to dangerously enhance illegal substances, heightening the ongoing overdose problem across the state and parish.

Elizabeth's death happened before those of Mitchell Robinson, 2, and Jahrei Paul, 1, both of whom overdosed on fentanyl in Baton Rouge last year. Their deaths brought enormous scrutiny on the state Department of Children and Family Services, which had been warned about both toddlers' families but failed to assess the children before they died.

DCFS leaders have said critical staffing shortages and soaring caseloads are hampering their efforts to protect children.

In Elizabeth's case, DCFS decided that Elizabeth could stay in Kanada's home as long as she worked toward getting sober, and caseworkers would periodically check in on them. A worker checked on the family in March and gave a positive assessment, saying they would review the case and possibly close it in April.

But before they could, tragedy struck.

'She never thought her child would die from it'

Elizabeth's case emerged Tuesday evening during a heated Livingston Parish Council ordinance committee meeting about whether to ban kratom. Dr. Ron Coe, the local coroner, testified about the impact of the herbal extract on the community.

Although the parish has only seen a handful of kratom-related deaths in the last two years, Coe cited Elizabeth's overdose as a flashpoint. Of the few people who have died with kratom in their systems, all had tested positive for other drugs, he said.

After her toddler's death, Kanada told detectives Elizabeth had discovered the pack of kratom pills she had bought at a local tobacco shop, police records say. She said she kept the pills in her purse, usually out of the child's reach.

Kanada said she took the herbal extract for pain management and to “stay off of opioids,” the documents say.

A few hours before Elizabeth's death, Kanada caught her trying to eat the kratom pills, police reports say. She told police she managed to fish two pills out of the child's mouth, but a third had partially dissolved — and she wasn't sure whether Elizabeth had broken into the 3-pack or 5-pack of kratom pills, which she bought locally in Livingston Parish.

“She said after that she never thought her child would die from it,” the police report says.

The police report does not specify how the toddler ingested the other substance — tianeptine — that led to her death, or clarify if it was adulterating the kratom product Kanada purchased.

Should it be banned?

The U.S. Drug Enforcement Administration calls kratom a "drug and chemical of concern" that has been found to provide an energy boost at low doses but sedative, opioid-like effects at higher ones. While the product is not regulated under the Controlled Substances Act, the U.S. Food and Drug Administration has not approved kratom for any medical use.

Livingston Parish Sheriff Jason Ard said his deputies rarely make a drug bust where kratom is not present. When asked if the parish should criminalize possession or distribution, he answered without hesitation: "I'd say ban it all."

But others in the audience Tuesday night argued kratom should be regulated, not banned. Those who use kratom to manage depression, anxiety and chronic pain may turn to more dangerous substances like fentanyl and opioids in the absence of the extract, said Paul Schexnaydre.

Schexnaydre, a veteran, said kratom has helped him cope with his PTSD and allowed him to better parent his children. As the council spoke favorably about banning the extract following law enforcement testimony, Schexnaydre grew visibly upset.

"I’m a law-abiding citizen," he said. "You’re just about to make me a criminal."

A mother in crisis

About six months before Elizabeth died, the Department of Children and Family Services had made contact with Kanada when she overdosed on heroin, records show. Kanada spent eight hours in the hospital recovering.

The DCFS report describes in detail how Kanada was experiencing several mental health challenges as she struggled with PTSD symptoms and a history of surviving domestic violence.

Kanada told authorities the heroin incident was a relapse during a difficult time after several years of sobriety. With a safety plan in place, the department declined to remove the toddler from the home.

A follow-up drug screen was negative, and reports show Elizabeth appeared happy and healthy to caseworkers. The reports note some safety concerns, but there was ultimately not enough evidence to determine Kanada was unfit to supervise her child, staff found.

In the police report, detectives noted the case and said it appeared Kanada complied with all DCFS requests and adhered to the case plan arranged by DCFS family services.

A spokesperson for DCFS did not immediately return a request for comment.

After her child's death, Kanada admitted to police that she had used methamphetamine three nights before the incident, causing her to lose sleep, and said that she had smoked marijuana hours before she found her toddler. Several reports described how she appeared under the influence when emergency personnel responded to the crisis.

In 2022, Kanada took a no contest plea to negligent homicide and a drug charge. She was sentenced to five years in prison. The public defender who represented Kanada at the time of her plea did not return a request for comment.

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