Father Sentenced In Fentanyl-Related Death Of Child: DA

WAPPINGERS FALLS, NY — A local man has been sentenced to six months in prison for his 10-month-old daughter’s death from fentanyl exposure.

Thomas Martinez, 41, entered a guilty plea in May to criminally negligent homicide. After he serves his prison sentence, he will be on probation for five years.

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According to the Dutchess County District Attorney’s office, the case dates back to Nov. 9, 2020, when the child was exposed to the drug at 11 Creekview Court in the Village of Wappingers Falls.

District Attorney Anthony Parisi said the sentence reflects the “devastating consequences of criminal negligence” when dangerous narcotics are present around children.

“A 10-month-old child lost her life because the defendant failed to take the most basic precautions to protect her from exposure to fentanyl,” Parisi said, in an announcement Friday. “No sentence can ever restore this child’s life or erase the unimaginable loss suffered by her loved ones, but today’s sentence ensures that justice was ultimately pursued.”

In an unrelated but similar case, a Poughkeepsie man, Haitham Dasan, 49, was sentenced recently to 2 to 4 years in state prison for criminally negligent homicide following the fentanyl-related death of his 16-month-old daughter.

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Dutchess County Man Arrested In Fentanyl Intoxication Death Of 10-Month-Old Child: NYSP