When WPD officers responded to a medical emergency call in Worthington earlier this month, the officers and EMT's found a small child in distress—going in and out of consciousness. The child was transported to Greene County General then to Riley. The father has been arrested and charged with neglect. He's accused of leaving ‘gummys’ containing a high level of THC out on a coffee table where the child was eating crackers and apparently ate the gummies too.

Chance Nicholas Devlin King, 24, Worthington, was arrested by Deputy Marshal Heather Wood of the Worthington Police Department on Tuesday, May 17, on a warrant that was issued following an investigation by Deputy Marshal Wood, assisted by WPD Town Marshal Jim O'Malley.

With only very minor editing, the following paragraphs are the entire text of the probable cause affidavit prepared by Officer Wood:

On May 4, 2022, at approximately 9:50 a.m. I, Officer Wood along with Chief James O'Malley responded to an emergency medical call located at 103 Canal St, Apt A.

Upon arrival, we spoke with Chance King who stated that his one-year-old infant son was crying and going in and out of consciousness and he was not sure what was going on.

Chance also advised he thought his child had something in his throat because he was coughing. Chance stated that his child was eating goldfish crackers and began to gag or cough and became very lethargic and now he doesn't want to stay awake. Chance said that he also began to cry and would not stop. Chance advised that this was not normal behavior for him.

Chance was asked if his child could have gotten in to something that he shouldn't have like household chemicals or medications. Chance advised "no" and stated that the child did not have any allergies that he knew of and was not on any medication. When speaking with Chance, I observed the child’s body twitching and shaking at times and he could barely keep his eyes open or his head held up. At one point the child’s eyes rolled back and his body went limp.

While inside the residence, I observed a coffee table in the living room area that had goldfish crackers, a baby bottle of milk, and a sippy cup on it. Chance advised that the child had been eating goldfish crackers and veggie straws but that's all he had. Chance stated that he tried to make him a bottle when he was crying because he did not know why he suddenly started crying.

When Greene County Ambulance Services arrived, Chance stated that he had a question. Chance then advised that he thought his child may be "high" due to some edible THC gummy bears that he had accidentally left out on the coffee table. Chance advised the gummy bears were sitting on the same coffee table where the goldfish crackers and bottle were sitting. Chance said he had just remembered that they were on the table. Chance stated that the child may have eaten one or two of the gummy bears and also advised that the gummy bears have a very strong level of THC.

Chief O’Malley asked Chance where the gummy bears are now, and Chance advised that was all that he had and that there were no more. Chance advised the gummy bear was cut into fourths and that the child ate three-fourths of one gummy bear which would be approximately 37 milligrams of THC because one gummy bear was approximately 50 milligrams of THC.

Greene County Ambulance Service transported the child to Greene County General Hospital for stabilization.

Chance was asked if there were any more drugs inside the home or in his vehicle. Chance said, “No.” Chance was advised we would get a search warrant for his home. Chance then stated, "I promise to God there's nothing in there." Chance stated that he had one gummy bear and that he does not do this stuff often.

Chance also advised that he cut the one gummy bear into fourths because he can only handle one-fourth of a gummy bear at a time due to the high THC levels. Chance said he ate one-fourth of a gummy bear the day before because he did not have the child with him and then he forgot and left them on the table.

Chance was read his rights for Consent to Search. Chance understood his rights and consented to a search of the residence and vehicle.

Chance checked his vehicle to see if there was anything else inside and grabbed a plastic baggy from the front console area that had a chocolate chip cookie in it. Chance advised the cookie contained THC.

Chance also said if he had any marijuana, it would be in a drawer in his bedroom. Chance showed us a small table with two drawers and advised he usually keeps the marijuana in the bottom drawer. This side table was in the same room where Chance and the child sleep.

Chief O'Malley asked Chance if there could possibly be any more drugs inside the home and Chance paused for a minute and delayed to answer. Chance was then advised that he needed to be honest about the situation. Chance then stated he forgot about the marijuana that was under his computer tower and handed Chief O'Malley a baggy that contained a green leafy plant-like material along with a white rolled paper containing the same substance.

The rest of the home was searched and nothing else was located.

Chance was advised that he was not under arrest at that time and read Miranda Rights. Chance requested an attorney be present before any further questioning.

I (Officer Wood) contacted the child’s mother and she gave written consent to obtain the child’s medical records.

After stabilized at Greene County General Hospital, the child was transferred to Riley Children's Hospital in Indianapolis.

A search warrant was filed and approved to obtain the child’s blood to determine the levels of THC in his system. The search warrant was executed at Greene County General Hospital.

This marks the end of the text contained in the probable cause affidavit prepared by Officer Wood.

After information gleaned from the investigation was submitted to the Greene County Prosecutor's Office, a criminal case was filed on Monday, May 16, in Greene Superior Court and a warrant was issued for King's arrest the same day.

King was taken into custody by Officer Wood the next day – Tuesday, May 17, and booked into the Greene County Jail at 3:55 PM. His bond was set at $5000 surety with 10 percent cash allowed. He posted $500 and was released later that same day.

King has retained Defense Attorney Joseph Lozano of Bloomington to represent him.

An initial hearing was set for June 6 but the defense waived the initial hearing.

King has now been charged with:

• Neglect of a dependent – dependent placed in a situation that endangers the dependent, at Level 6 felony,

• Possession of marijuana, a Class B misdemeanor, and

• False informing, a Class B misdemeanor.

No further information has been released concerning the child’s condition or medical status.