Mom In Jail After Family Finds Her Passed Out With Children, Pills Nearby
SCOTTDALE (KDKA) - A mother from Scottdale is in jail after police say she admitted to excessively using prescription painkillers while her children were at home.
According to the affidavit of probable cause, police got a call from Emily Garsteck saying her uncle had taken her sons from her, and refused to give them back. Garsteck told police her uncle, Brook Garsteck, was accusing her of doing drugs.
When police spoke with Brook Garsteck, he told officers he had gotten a call from the Emily Garsteck's father, James Garsteck, asking him to remove the children from the home.
James Garsteck later told police that when he got home from work, he found his daughter there passed out on the couch with prescription painkillers scattered around the room. He told officers his daughter is addicted to pills, and had recently started using Xanax and Suboxone.
He also told police that he took a photo of his daughter while she was passed out to prove the allegations.
James Garsteck also told officers that when he found Emily Garsteck, her 3-month-old child was sleeping in the middle of the floor, amidst the pills, and her 1-year-old son was resting his head on her chest and had nothing on but a t-shirt.
James Garsteck also told police he was afraid to remove the children from the home himself because he didn't want to get into an argument with his daughter when she woke up, so he called her uncle to do it instead.
Both James and Brook Garsteck monitored the children's condition after they were removed from the home. Officers advised them to get medical help if they thought the children had ingested any pills.
Police later searched the home and found Suboxone pills and needles. One needle was "loaded," and contained suspected Suboxone.
Emily Garsteck was taken into custody and later admitted to using Suboxone and Xanax. She appeared in court Wednesday for a preliminary arraignment on charges of endangering the welfare of her children.
James Garsteck was at his daughter's hearing. He told KDKA that his daughter is a good mother who is battling an addiction that got the better of her the day of the incident and put his grandchildren at risk. He said more should be done to stop the people who sell drugs.
The children were placed in the custody of the uncle, Brook Garsteck.
Emily Garsteck is being held in the Westmoreland County Jail on $10,000 straight cash bond.
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