Blake

PHILIPPI — A third person has been charged for alleged child neglect tied to an overdose death in Barbour County.

Jessica Blake, 43, is charged with one count of child neglect creating risk of injury. She is currently being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $50,000 surety/cash bond.

According to the criminal complaint, filed by Cpl. C. Parks with the Upshur County Sheriff’s Office, on March 23 around 8:25 p.m., officers were made aware of an overdose that occurred on Spall Lick Road in Philippi.

A man was pronounced dead at Broaddus Hospital and Blake was unconscious when she arrived at the hospital, the complaint states. At the time of the overdose, the man and Blake’s child was inside the residence under their supervision. Officers familiar with the couple knew they had a juvenile child and that the child was not brought with them to the hospital.

Officers went to the residence on Spall Lick Road to try and locate the child, the complaint states. Upon arrival, Parks observed the front door of the residence was “wide open.” Due to the child being missing and the front door being open, Parks conducted a safety check on the residence in an attempt to find the child.

Inside the residence, Parks observed a hat and a butane torch on the living room floor, the complaint states. He was not able to find the child at this time. Deputy Elbon with the Barbour County Sheriff’s Office located a bag of suspected methamphetamine that weighed approximately 10.5 grams. The bag was laying in the driveway directly in front of the porch stairs.

Park received a search warrant for the residence and during the execution of the warrant, located two bags of suspected marijuana, one glass smoking device used for ingesting methamphetamine, a substance on a glass dinner plate suspected to be methamphetamine located on the child’s headboard and a “white powdery substance suspected to be methamphetamine” located on the dining room table.

When the man and Blake overdosed, it left the child unsupervised, the complaint states.

Jeremy Wayne Tacy, 29, of Belington, and Tiara Marie Miller, 33, have both also been charged in relation to the man’s death and the child being left unsupervised.

Tacy is charged with child neglect creating risk of injury and conspiracy. He is being held in the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on an $80,000 cash bond

Miller is charged with one count of drug delivery resulting in death, one count of failure to render aid, one count of conspiracy and one count of child neglect creating risk of injury, all felonies. She is currently being held at the Tygart Valley Regional Jail on a $200,000 cash-only bond.