A suburban Chicago couple has been charged with first-degree murder in the death of their 2-year-old daughter after police were called to a home for a possible carbon monoxide leak and made a horrifying discovery.
The Will County Sheriff’s office said they were called on Nov. 6 to a home in the 12200 block of West Thorn Apple Drive for an unresponsive child, with officers warned there may be a carbon monoxide leak in the home.
When they arrived, officers said they found Edward Weiher, 49, doing chest compressions on 2-year-old Trinity, “who was lying on an ottoman in the living room.” The child’s mother, Alexa Balen and her 6-year-old sister were also in the room, police said.
Trinity was ultimately taken by the Homer Township Fire Department to Silver Cross Hospital, where she was pronounced dead just after midnight on Nov. 7.
The fire department and Nicor Gas confirmed no gas lake was found on the property.
Investigators did notice, however, what they described as “deplorable” living conditions. Garbage and rotting food were seen in the home alongside soiled diapers and clothing, medical waste and “significant evidence of narcotics use.”
Roughly 9 grams of heroin were found inside the home “within reach of both children,” police said.
Nearly two dozen Xanax pills were seen on a bedroom floor and multiple doses of used Narcan were located near where Trinity had been found.
The parents were brought in for questioning and the 6-year-old child was taken into custody by the Department of Children and Family Services.
“During questioning, both Weiher and Balen made incriminating statements. They were subsequently arrested on initial felony charges and later released,” police said.
But an autopsy later revealed findings to support charges of first-degree murder.
Weiher and Balen were indicted on first-degree murder charges and appeared in court Monday. They were released on pretrial conditions under the Illinois Safe-T Act, the Will County Sheriff’s office said.
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