Alva woman charged with child neglect
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March 27, 2022
An Alva woman who gave birth to a premature baby is now being charged with a felony in Woods County.
Latasha Leann Bebee, 37, of Alva, has been charged with child neglect, a felony. This crime is punishable by imprisonment not exceeding life, or by a fine of $500 to $5,000, or both such fine and imprisonment.
Court records show on March 7, an Oklahoma Department of Human Services (DHS) child welfare supervisor told District Attorney’s Investigator Steve Tanio that Bebee had given birth to a daughter on Feb. 17. A normal pregnancy is 40 weeks, and the baby was born at 36 weeks, weighing five lb. 14 oz. Bebee tested positive for THC at birth.
Bebee and her husband Derrick Province resided in Alva during the pregnancy. Both Province and Bebee told the DHS worker that Bebee uses marijuana in the mornings to calm her anxiety rather than take prescription drugs. They said high anxiety has triggered a seizure for Bebee in the last year. She also uses medical marijuana at night to help her sleep, according to the affidavit.
Tanio reviewed Bebee’s “Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Adult Patient License.” On the back side of the card in bold print is the phrase, “Do not use medical marijuana if you are pregnant or breastfeeding.” Bebee’s physician from Enid told Tanio he was aware Bebee had a medical marijuana card and was using marijuana during the pregnancy.
Tanio spoke with OU Children’s Hospital Child Abuse Physician Dr. Ryan Brown who was recent appointed to the State of Oklahoma Medical Marijuana Advisory Council. He stated if an infant or child tested positive for THC, the active ingredient in medical marijuana, he would consider this child abuse and be required to make a report to law enforcement. He also told Tanio about a Sept. 2018 American Academy of Pediatrics Clinical Report regarding the scientific harmful effects of THC use during pregnancy for the woman and on fetal, infant and child development. Brown said there are other medications that are scientifically reliable other than medical marijuana to use for these symptoms during pregnancy.
Tanio reviewed a U.S. Drug Testing Laboratories report indicating Bebee’s infant tested positive for the presence of Cannabinoids and Carboxy-THC.
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