Babysitter, 17, arrested for 'filming herself forcing a baby to smoke cannabis'

28 March 2023 , 01:44

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Naledi Roberts, 17, filmed herself forcing a one-year-old baby to inhale cannabis smoke

A teenager who allegedly forced a toddler to inhale cannabis from a lit joint has been charged with child abuse.

Naledi Roberts, 17, is said to have recorded footage of the incident, in which she lit the joint and could be seen placing it into the one-year-old girl's mouth, who inhaled as the embers at the end of the cigarette glowed brighter.

Roberts then allegedly took it out of the child's mouth and placed it into her own before inhaling.

Following allegations of child abuse, officers had responded to a private residence in incorporated Largo, Florida, on Thursday March 23.

According to the Daily Mail, Pinellas County Sheriff’s Office arrested Roberts on Friday, after detectives discovered the footage she had recorded. It is unclear how police obtained the clip.

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Roberts had been babysitting the tot for her friend, who is the child's mother

Upon being questioned, Roberts admitted to smoking marijuana near the tot, who she was babysitting for her 16-year-old friend.

However, after she was confronted with the footage, Roberts went on to admit she had put the joint into the child's mouth.

Roberts was then arrested by officers and charged with one count of felony child abuse. She was taken to the Pinellas Juvenile Assessment Centre.

She has since refused to explain why she put the drug into the child's mouth.

A Pinellas County Sheriff's Office spokeswoman told the Daily Mail that the child did not appear to have suffered from any long-lasting injuries from the incident.

It has been found that "children exposed to marijuana are almost twice as likely to exhibit delinquent behaviours" (Getty Images/Tetra images RF)

Roberts has no prior criminal history, apart from two traffic violations. She was found driving with a learner permit without a person aged 21 or over in the passenger seat in October 2021 and in December 2022. She paid two fines of $166 for each offence.

In Florida, the punishment for child abuse varies. The defendant’s previous conviction and the impact of the acts are taken into consideration. As a third-degree felony, child abuse or neglect that doesn’t cause bodily harm, disfigurement or disability is punishable by up to five years in prison, with the potential for a fines of up to $5,000.

According to Harvard University, studies have shown that by age 14, children exposed to marijuana were almost twice as likely to “exhibit delinquent behaviours as drug use” and more than twice as likely to use marijuana and tobacco regularly as adults.

Sophie Goodall