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PROVO — An Elk Ridge father accused of giving his newborn daughter drugs in the hospital to hide her addiction from doctors pleaded guilty Tuesday.
Colby Glen Wilde, 29, admitted as part of a plea deal to distribution of a controlled substance, a second-degree felony, while language was stricken indicating the offense happened in a drug-free zone.
Additionally, Wilde pleaded guilty Tuesday to child abuse, reduced from a second-degree felony to a third-degree felony. In exchange for his plea, two additional counts of child abuse were dismissed.
Additional charges dismissed as part of the deal include child endangerment, a third-degree felony; two counts of possession of controlled substance, a class A misdemeanor; and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor.
Wilde's common-law wife, Lacey Dawn Christenson, 26, faces identical charges. Her case is ongoing.
According to police, the parents feared that the baby girl born to them April 9 was born with an opiate dependence. In order to hide signs of withdrawal, they mixed crushed suboxone pills with water and applied it to the baby's gums, according to charging documents.
Suboxone is a prescription pain medication used for pain management and for addiction treatment.
Following the couple's arrest, two of their children living in the home also tested positive for methamphetamine in their system, according to court documents.
"The health of the three children has been seriously impaired and all have required ongoing medical care," charging documents state.
A monthlong investigation into the couple began June 26 when police say Wilde attempted to pull items from shelves in a Walmart store and then return them to the store for money.
Related:
Parents accused of giving baby drugs face new child abuse charges
An Elk Ridge couple accused of trying to disguise their newborn baby's addiction by giving her drugs in the hospital are now facing additional child abuse charges.As Wilde tried to flee, carrying his infant daughter in a car seat, police say he ran into the store's sliding glass doors and then a pillar, twice dropping the seat. As bystanders tried to stop Wilde, he allegedly handed the car seat with his child in it to a stranger and ran to his car to escape.
Wilde was arrested soon after. Christenson, who was in the store with her three boys, ages 8, 4 and 2, was arrested on an outstanding warrant.
Wilde was charged in connection with the incident at Walmart. He pleaded no contest Tuesday to one count each of drug possession, a class A misdemeanor, and DUI, a class B misdemeanor.
One more count of drug possession was dismissed in the deal, along with charges of possession of drug paraphernalia, a class B misdemeanor, and not having insurance, a class C misdemeanor.
His next hearing in the case is scheduled for Oct. 16.
Wilde pleaded no contest to shoplifting on Aug. 11 in connection with the same incident, according to court records, and was sentenced to one year of probation.
