Grandmother Pleads No Contest to Neglecting 3-Year-Old Who Died from Drug Overdose

A Wisconsin woman has been convicted of neglecting her 3-year-old granddaughter who died from a prescription drug overdose.

April M. Walker, 40, faced criminal charges after her granddaughter, 3-year-old Amaya Marie Walker, died after consuming both oxycodone and Valium. 

According to the complaint, Walker failed to seek help for Amaya for nearly six hours. The complaint says Walker notified staff and residents at the YWCA homeless shelter where she and Amaya lived that she was going to take the girl to the emergency room. Instead, Walker first drove two YWCA residents to a Job Center, and then went to her mother's house to watch "Young and the Restless." It wasn't until the show was over that she finally called a nurse to ask about Amaya's condition. Even after speaking to a nurse, it wasn't until Walker picked up a friend, who noticed that Amaya wasn't breathing, that 911 was called.

Amaya died the next day. She had six times the therapeutic range for oxycodone in her system, in addition to the Valium. A doctor later testified that she could have been saved had she been taken to the hospital right away.

As part of a plea agreement, Walker pleaded no contest.  District Attorney Brian Blanchard said he would ask for no more than 10 years in prison.

Walker's attorney said she is acknowledging her responsibility for the offense and her actions by pleading no contest.

Walker, who has a history of prescription drug abuse, said she doesn't use drugs anymore, but that she was taking medication for anxiety and depression to cope with her grief.

Amaya's mother was in prison at the time of her death. 

It's unclear how Amaya got access to the drugs.

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