VERMONT

Rutland child care provider charged in death of 6-month-old

Free Press Staff
Stacey L. Vaillancourt, 53, of Rutland is seen in this booking photo taken Monday, March 18, 2019.

A Rutland child care provider was arrested and charged with manslaughter Monday after a 6-month-old baby in her care was found to have died of a high amount of an antihistamine.

The infant, Harper Rose Briar, died Jan. 24. It was her third day at Stacey Vaillancourt's home child care, Vermont State Police said in a news release.

An autopsy report from the Chief Medical Examiner's Office in Burlington showed that the child died of diphenhydramine intoxication, police said.

Diphenhydramine is the the active ingredient in Benadryl. It should not be given to young children except under the direction of a doctor, according to a peer-reviewed report referenced on the National Institutes of Health website. There was no doctor's order recommending the drug for the child in Rutland, police said.

More:It's harder to find child care in Vermont. Here's what the numbers show.

A 2003 study examined several cases of fatal diphenhydramine intoxication, including one case where a father used the drug in an attempt to help his baby sleep. It's rare to hear of fatal diphenhydramine intoxication, according to the study.

Vaillancourt, 53, was arrested Monday and expected to be charged with manslaughter and cruelty to a child, police said. She was scheduled to appear in court at 3 p.m.

A person who answered the phone at Vermont Superior Court in Rutland just before 4:30 p.m. Monday said a sworn police statement and other documents in the case were not yet publicly available. A judge found probable cause.

No one answered a phone number listed under Vaillancourt's name and child care business Monday. 

The Department for Children and Families worked with Vermont State Police and Rutland Police in the investigation. A DCF spokesperson was not immediately available Monday afternoon for additional details about Vaillancourt's child care home.