Summit County woman who gave birth to drug-addicted baby arrested

A Summit County mother charged with child abuse after giving birth to a drug-addicted baby was in custody Tuesday.

Summit County Sheriff's Det. Sgt. Ronald Bridge confirmed that Shea Renee Sheeran, 27, had been arrested by Utah Adult Probation and Parole officers. He did not have details of when or where Sheeran, of Kamas, was picked up.

The Department of Corrections' inmate roster for Tuesday showed Sheeran as being incarcerated within the Utah State Prison system, but officials did not immediately respond to requests for information on her arrest and status.

Sheeran had been the subject of a $100,000 arrest warrant issued late last Friday. She faces two second-degree felony counts — one for intentionally inflicting serious physical injury to a child, and another for endangerment of a child.

A probable cause statement alleges that Sheeran gave birth to a baby boy on Aug. 29 at the Park City Medical Center. Toxicology tests on both the mother and newborn showed positive results for amphetamines and opiates, prosecutors allege.

"[The infant] began experiencing drug withdrawal symptoms within six hours of his birth," the charges contend. "Specifically, [the infant] experienced tremors, exhibited high-pitched screaming, was vomiting and had severe diarrhea. [The child] was also hypersensitive to light, sound and touch."

On Aug. 31, the newborn was flown to Intermountain Medical Center in Murray for treatment, spending the next several weeks in the hospital's Neonatal Intensive Care Unit.

The baby has since been placed in an adoptive home. However, his prognosis remains uncertain, and prosecutors note that the boy "may suffer long-term complications from being exposed to control substances in utero, including brain damage and learning disabilities."

Prosecutors allege Sheeran admitted to detectives that during her pregnancy she took prescription Adderall and Clonazepam, keeping her pregnancy a secret from her physician. The defendant also admitted to having used cocaine and heroin while carrying her child.

Court documents indicate Sheeran was on parole at the time she gave birth, having served time for forgery and illegal drug possession.

remims@sltrib.com