19-Year-Old Mother Charged With Drug Paraphernalia Possession
This photo appearing to show a baby smoking a bong is circulating on the Internet.
KEYSTONE HEIGHTS, Fla. -- The mother of a baby who appeared to be smoking a bong told a detective she thought it was funny that her 11-month-old son put the bong into his mouth and looked like he was smoking pot, according to court documents released Thursday.Rachel Stieringer, 19, of Keystone Heights, was arrested on charges of possession of drug paraphernalia following the infamous photograph that attracted so much attention on the Internet.Detectives said Stieringer admitted to having the bong in her bedroom. She told investigators she was cleaning her room one day and her young son crawled in and put the pipe up to his mouth, according to the documents.
Clay County Sheriff's Office booking photo of Rachel Stieringer
Stieringer said that's when she snapped a picture of it on her phone, detectives said.According to the arrest warrant affidavit, Stieringer admitted to sending the pictures to a few friends but told detectives she had no idea how it got posted to her Facebook account.The affidavit says Stieringer failed a drug test and had traces of marijuana in her system.When Channel 4 first reported the story in June, Stieringer posted a message on her Facebook account saying, "Do you realize how serious this is? I can go to jail, and he can be taken away from me. Why would you do something so (expletive) stupid? I know what I did was stupid, but I would never put my baby in harm. I'm so nice to everyone. (I don't know) why you would do this to me."The Department of Children and Families is still investigating Stieringer.Stieringer was unavailable for comment Thursday.
