Washington state couple injected kids with heroin to 'put them to sleep,' prosecutor says

PIERCE COUNTY, Wash. — A Washington state couple has been accused of injecting their children -- ages 2, 4 and 6 -- with heroin to "put them to sleep," according to the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney's Office.

Child Protective Services removed the three young children from the home on Nov. 10, 2015 after finding "serious health and safety hazards."

"Investigators from Child Protective services reported multiple individuals lived at the residence and everyone was using heroin," a statement from the Pierce County prosecuting attorney's office read.

"They made a determination that abuse and neglect of the children had occurred," the statement continued. "They noted marks, cuts, and bruises on one of the children’s body. They also noted the bruises appeared to be injection marks with bruising."

Ashlee Rose Hutt, 24, was charged on Monday with unlawful delivery of a controlled substance to a person under age 18, criminal mistreatment in the second degree and assault of a child in the second degree, the Pierce County Prosecuting Attorney's Office said the statement.

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Mac Lerory McIver, 25, was charged with the same crimes in September, the prosecutor's office added.

Aluminum foil rolls of "cooker heroin" were found in the home, along with "rat droppings and drug needles," Deputy Prosecuting Attorney Erica Eggertsen said in the affidavit obtained by ABC News.

Eggertsen added that both Hutt and McIver admitted to being heroin users.

Hutt and McIver's 6-year-old son later told CPS that "his mom and dad give him and his sister the 'feel good medicine,'" which he described as a white powder mixed with water that would be injected into them via a needle, according to the affidavit.

The boy added that "he and his sisters usually go to sleep after getting the medicine."

Hair follicle tests performed on the children two months after they were placed into protective custody showed that evidence of heroin remained in two of the children's systems, the affidavit also said.

Both Hutt and McIver have pleaded not guilty to the charges against them, according to James Lynch, communications and public relations coordinator for the prosecuting attorney's office.

In a subsequent interview with law enforcement, McIver said the babysitter may have been responsible for giving the children heroin, according to the affidavit.

A jury trial has been scheduled for Hutt on Dec. 20 and for McIver on Feb. 16, a Pierce County Superior Court clerk administrator told ABC News today.

McIver's attorney, John Meske, declined to comment to ABC News.

Hutt's attorney, Laura Carnell, did not immediately respond to ABC News' requests for comment.

Cox Media Group