Probation for South Elgin man whose toddler overdosed on dad's drugs
A South Elgin man was sentenced to probation and nine days of work release after pleading guilty to felony charges after his toddler son overdosed on the man's drugs and needed to be revived with an anti-narcotic medication.
Steve M. Foresta, 29, of the 1000 block of South Elgin Road, pleaded guilty to felony possession of a controlled substance, obstruction of justice and misdemeanor child endangerment as part of a plea agreement with prosecutors, according to Kane County court records.
Foresta's probation runs through October 2020, and if he violates it, he could be resentenced to up to three years in prison. He also must pay $2,670 in court fines and fees and complete nine days of work release, records show.
Authorities charged Foresta after they responded to his house April 10, 2017 for a call that a 2½-year-old child had turned blue and was having trouble breathing.
Foresta was charged with felony possession of cocaine and Norco, a pain relieving narcotic. The child endangerment charge accused Foresta of storing a white powder, possibly heroin, in a cupboard that was accessible to the toddler, court records show.
South Elgin Deputy Chief Randy Endean on Thursday could not specify exactly what type of drugs the toddler ingested.
Paramedics were unsure what drugs the child had ingested at the time, so they administered naloxone, a drug that fights narcotics overdoses. The child was treated at Presence St. Joseph Hospital in Elgin and transferred to the pediatric intensive care unit at St. Alexius Medical Center in Hoffman Estates.
The obstruction of justice charge Foresta pleaded guilty to accused him of locking himself in a bathroom and flushing drugs down a toilet.
Foresta also completed rehab and counseling before entering into the plea agreement, in which prosecutors dismissed other, less severe charges such as possession of a hypodermic needle and possession of drug paraphernalia, court records show. Kane County Judge D.J. Tegler accepted the plea agreement.
A message left with Foresta's defense attorney, Patrick Campanelli, was not immediately returned.