LAS CRUCES – A 27-year-old woman was arrested after police discovered her two children – an 8-year-old and a 2-year-old – tested positive for methamphetamine, according to Las Cruces police.
Marissa Gomez, who has addresses in Las Cruces and Silver City, is charged with two counts of child abuse. Both charges are third-degree felony counts.
Las Cruces police investigators report that, on Oct. 4, officers were dispatched to conduct a welfare check on children at a residence at 1089 W. Amador Ave. Gomez indicated to an officer that other people who visit her have smoked methamphetamine in the apartment she shares with her two daughters.
The young girls were turned over to the custody of the state’s Children, Youth and Families Department. The girls were given drug tests and investigators learned that they both tested positive for methamphetamine.
Upon further investigation, an LCPD investigator learned that Gomez and her friends regularly used meth and heroin inside her apartment. Gomez voluntarily consented to a drug test and investigators report that she also tested positive for methamphetamine.
Children are highly susceptible to the vapors of methamphetamine and surfaces contaminated by the drug. Meth can enter the body through contact with a contaminated surface, direct ingestion and through second-hand smoke.
A warrant was issued for the arrest of Gomez. She was arrested Nov. 15 by police in Silver City and was granted release the following day.
