Famed novelist Paul Auster's son, Daniel, has been charged with manslaughter and negligent homicide in the drug overdose death of his 10-month-old daughter.
Speaking at Daniel's arraignment in Brooklyn Criminal Court on Sunday, Assistant District Attorney Tien Tran said the 44-year-old told officials that he woke up on the afternoon of Nov. 1 to find his daughter, Ruby's "lips blue and eyes stiff," according to the New York Post. Daniel had been using heroin that day and tried to save Ruby with Narcan, Tran said.
Paramedics arrived at the scene to find the baby unconscious and unresponsive. She was rushed to a nearby hospital where she was pronounced dead.
City medical examiners found Ruby's cause of death to be "acute intoxication by the combined effects of fentanyl and heroin," CBS News noted. There were enough drugs in her body to "render an adult unconscious," Tran said, according to the Post.
"The incident has been deemed a homicide," police said, according to NBC News, adding that Daniel had been charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide.
It has not yet been determined how Ruby ingested the drugs but according to Tran, Daniel kept "glassine packets of heroin" in the bathroom.
Tran asked Judge John Hecht to remand Daniel at the arraignment while Daniel’s lawyer, John Godfrey of the Legal Aid Society, asked for "reasonable bail" to be set, according to the Post. He reasoned that Daniel had gotten clean since the incident.
"He works in landscape construction. He attends Narcotics Anonymous," Godfrey said via the Post. "He maintains a friendly relationship with the child’s mother. He did turn himself in." the lawyer noted.
Hecht issued an order for psychiatric treatment for Daniel. He set a $250,000 insurance bond or $100,000 in cash.
"There is extreme recklessness, he is a flight risk due to his drug use," Hecht said.
Daniel's father, Paul, is celebrated for notable works such as "The New York Trilogy," "Moon Palace," and "Leviathan."
Zoe Papadakis ✉
Zoe Papadakis is a Newsmax writer based in South Africa with two decades of experience specializing in media and entertainment. She has been in the news industry as a reporter, writer and editor for newspapers, magazine and websites.
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