A Northampton woman is facing felony child endangerment charges and related drug offenses after she allegedly took her 2-year-old son on a drug run to the Kensington section of Philadelphia late last week.
Jordan Brugger-Shuster, 31, of Northampton, has been charged with one felony count of endangering the welfare of a child along with misdemeanor counts of possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia, in connection with a traffic stop in Montgomery Township early Friday morning.
Montgomery Township Police were patrolling on Bethlehem Pike at 12:34 a.m. on Sept. 9 when they observed a blue SUV with a broken taillight and subsequently initiated a traffic stop. Police made contact with the driver — identified as Sarah Strain, 31, of Bethlehem — the front seat passenger — identified as Kaitlyn Donchez, 32, of Bethlehem — and Brugger-Shuster, who was seated in the back seat with her 2-year-old son, according to the criminal complaint.
Brugger-Shuster told police that they had travelled to Kensington to purchase drugs, and added that while she was in Kensington, she snorted heroin, police said. Brugger-Shuster then asked if police could retrieve her son’s blanket from the backseat of the vehicle, at which point police found “numerous” glassine bags on the rear floorboard containing suspected heroin, according to the complaint.
Investigators said the suspected heroin was located directly next to the 2-year-old boy, and presented a clear danger to the toddler.
As police continued to speak with Brugger-Shuster, she advised that she may have a meth pipe in her bra, police said. Brugger Shuster then retrieved a bag of marijuana, two hypodermic needles, four wax envelopes of suspected heroin, an empty glassine bag containing a white residue and a rubber marijuana wax cap from her bra, police said.
All three of the women were then taken into custody.
Strain and Donchez were both charged with misdemeanor possession of a controlled substance and possession of drug paraphernalia. Both were then freed on $2,000 unsecured bail.
Brugger-Shuster was arraigned on Sept. 10 by District Judge Ed Levine, who set bail at $3,000 unsecured. She was subsequently released, and her next court appearance is a preliminary hearing on Oct. 12 at 1:45 p.m. in front of District Judge Andrea Duffy.
All suspects and defendants are innocent until proven guilty. This story was compiled using court records and the affidavit of probable cause.
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