San Jose parents charged with murder after the drug-induced death of their 18-month-old daughter
For release on November 22, 2023
CONTACT:
Sean Webby
Public Communications Officer
(408) 209-8064
San Jose parents charged with murder after the drug-induced death of their 18-month-old daughter
The parents of an 18-month-old girl were charged with murder today, three months after the toddler died of fentanyl and methamphetamine toxicity in the master bedroom of their San Jose residence.
Both Derek Vaughn Rayo, 27, and Kelly Gene Richardson, 28, had fentanyl and other opioids in their systems at the time of W. Doe’s death. The Santa Clara County Medical Examiner-Coroner’s Office found a fentanyl blood concentration of 74 ng/mL in the victim’s blood. Blood concentrations as low as 5 ng/mL can cause death from fentanyl toxicity.
Rayo is scheduled to be arraigned at 1:30 p.m. on Wednesday, Nov. 22 in Department 23 of the Hall of Justice in San Jose. Richardson, who is so far not in custody, does not have an arraignment scheduled at this time. If convicted, they face at least 15 years to life in prison. This is the first time that the Santa Clara County DA’s Office has charged parents for the murder of their own child in a fentanyl-related death.
“As many of us gather with our families this week, please give a moment to think of W. Doe – this innocent child and her sad and stolen life,” District Attorney Jeff Rosen said. “This is not a law enforcement official overreacting to an Illegal substance. Fentanyl will kill you as easily as a bullet. It is killing the children of our community.”
Just before midnight on Aug. 12, 2023, San Jose Police Department patrol officers responded to the 1500 block of Huddersfield Court after Derek Rayo called 911. When they arrived at the scene, EMTs observed that Baby W. Doe had been dead for hours.
During a search of the home, investigators located fentanyl on the nightstand of the master bedroom, a scraping tool with fentanyl residue on the desk, and another scraping tool with fentanyl on a rug located underneath the baby’s body.
Homicide detectives seized multiple electronic devices belonging to the couple. On them were text messages and social media messages showing evidence of narcotic use at the house when the child was present. There were also photographs and videos on Richardson’s phone showing Rayo smoking narcotics near the baby.
Through text messages and social media messages, Rayo and Richardson asked others to leave dangerous narcotics in open and unsecure places in the house, accessible to the toddler. Individuals who were living with the couple, as well as Richardson herself, articulated concerns about narcotic use around Baby W. Doe.
Last month, this Office charged a San Jose father with felony child neglect for the death of 3-month-old Baby Phoenix, after the infant was found dead in an apartment littered with fentanyl. She, too, was found with a lethal amount of drugs in her system. That case is pending.
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