A judge sentenced a 39-year-old Vancouver woman to 7.5 years in jail on Tuesday after a jury found her guilty of first-degree manslaughter in the death of her 21-month-old daughter, The Columbian reported.
Ruth, Katherine Richards’ daughter, died from a fentanyl overdose in March 2024. She discovered her daughter dead in her cradle. Officers responding to the 911 call discovered drug paraphernalia and crystal meth in the basement of a home on Z Street.
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According to The Columbian, the judge in the case agreed to the prosecutor’s requested sentence of 7.5 years. The prosecutor stated that, while Richards acted responsibly and concealed information from first responders, she did not intend to cause her daughter’s death.
According to court papers, Richards had a friend residing with her and her husband at the time. Richards informed investigators that the friend had been smoking something off foil in the living room the day before the toddler died, but she denied taking fentanyl herself. The companion informed authorities that was a lie and that he and Richards had taken fentanyl together.
Lab tests later revealed that the toddler had tested positive for fentanyl and Narcan.
When authorities informed Richards that her daughter had died from fentanyl, she said, “I’m fucking careless” and claimed that her friend had put foil on the floor. Richards also acknowledged to using fentanyl after her daughter died and administering two doses of Narcan to the toddler.
In court on Tuesday, Richards apologized to her family, according to The Columbian.
“I know nothing I do or amount of time I do will bring my daughter back,” the newspaper quoted Richards as saying. “I don’t wish this on my worst enemy. Whatever happens to me, nothing could hurt as much as losing my daughter.”
