Philly Man Charged After Infant Son’s ‘Near-Fatal’ Overdose In Thrift Store

A Philadelphia man has been arrested and charged after his 11-month-old son suffered a “near-fatal” overdose inside a Falls Township thrift store.

Corey Christopher Smith, 35, had a single count of endangering the welfare of a child filed last week.

Falls Township police responded to the March 9 incident at the 2nd Avenue Thrift Store on Commerce Boulevard at 1:38 p.m. after calls for an unconscious infant.

The Levittown-Fairless Hills Rescue Squad administered naloxone, an opioid reversal medication, after the child failed to regain consciousness.

The boy’s condition improved in less than a minute after naloxone was administered, according to police.

The baby was taken by ambulance to nearby Jefferson Bucks Hospital, and detectives responded to begin an investigation.

Smith and the child’s grandmother reportedly told paramedics at the scene there was no chance the baby had been exposed to drugs.

Responding officers noted in court papers that Smith appeared to be under the influence at the time.

Toxicology results later confirmed the infant tested positive for several substances, including fentanyl, norfentanyl, xylazine, morphine, and codeine.

Medical staff at Jefferson Bucks Hospital stated the ingestion was “near fatal” and toxicology results were consistent with street drugs.

According to police, Smith has full custody of the boy.

While Smith claimed to have been clean from heroin addiction for three years, a drug screening conducted by Philadelphia authorities after the incident returned positive results for fentanyl and marijuana, according to court records.

The incident happened while Smith and his mother were in the area for the grandmother’s medical appointment, police said.

Detectives reported that Smith took the child for a walk while the grandmother was with a doctor.

The family noticed the infant would not wake up shortly after entering the thrift store after the appointment ended, police said.

The child was first treated at Jefferson Bucks Hospital but later transferred to St. Christopher’s Hospital for Children in Philadelphia after losing consciousness later in the afternoon, police said.

A medical staffer told an investigator that Smith became tearful when informed of the baby’s positive toxicology results.

Before the infant could be discharged, Falls Township police and a hospital social worker coordinated with the Philadelphia Department of Human Services to set up an evaluation.

Smith was preliminarily arraigned by District Judge John Galloway. Bail has been set at 10 percent of $250,000.

Editor’s Note: All individuals arrested or charged with a crime are presumed innocent until proven guilty. The story was compiled using information from police and public court documents.