Kearney baby tests positive for meth, cocaine

KEARNEY, Neb. (KSNB) - Prosecutors have charged a Kearney woman with child abuse after blood tests on her baby showed traces of methamphetamine and cocaine.

Jessica Hernandez, 34, is charged with child abuse resulting in bodily injury. Police arrested her Thursday; she is lodged in the Buffalo County Detention Center.

Court records show Hernandez gave birth to the baby Dec. 26, 2023, at a home in west Kearney. Emergency workers were called to the scene when the baby had trouble breathing. The child was later taken to CHI Good Samaritan Hospital. Police report that Hernandez and the baby’s father were uncooperative and that Hernandez refused a blood test.

Tests done on the baby’s blood and urine as well as a section of the umbilical cord revealed traces of amphetamines, methamphetamine and cocaine. The baby was in a neo-natal intensive care unit with a feeding tube and a CPAP machine to assist breathing.

A hearing on the charges against Hernandez was pending in Buffalo County Court Friday morning. If convicted on the child abuse charge, Hernandez could get up to three years in prison.

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