An Ohio couple, Justin Soll and Shannon Wester, have been sentenced to prison for involuntary manslaughter after their eight-day-old daughter died of cocaine toxicity, with investigators finding cocaine residue on her pacifier and other infant supplies.
While some early reports mistakenly claimed that the couple received a combined minimum of 10 years for a death in January, Ohio court records clarify that Justin Soll was sentenced to a minimum of 10 years (maximum 15) and Shannon Wester to 5 years (maximum 7.5) after their eight-day-old daughter, Emilia, tragically died of cocaine toxicity following an incident in February 2026.
According to police records reported by the Daily Mail, Oregon police officers dispatched to the residence on 22 February found that the unresponsive newborn was just six days old, though hospital records later noted she survived on life support to live for a total of eight days.
According to the Daily Express UK, the parents reported feeding the newborn at roughly 2:00 am before putting her down to sleep, after which Justin Soll woke up around 4:00 am to find that the infant had stopped breathing and had vomit coming from her nose and mouth.
The Lucas County Coroner’s Office officially ruled eight-day-old Emilia Soll’s death a homicide caused by anoxic encephalopathy from cocaine toxicity, after postmortem testing detected active cocaine and its metabolites in her system, proving her body had processed the drug before she suffered fatal brain damage from a lack of oxygen.
Emergency responders rushed to the scene and administered CPR before transporting the infant to Nationwide Children’s Hospital-Toledo, where she tragically passed away three days later after being placed on life support.
A subsequent search of the property uncovered cocaine and drug paraphernalia stored directly alongside baby care items, and laboratory testing later confirmed that trace amounts of cocaine were found on the infant’s pacifier.
In the months following their daughter’s death, the couple posted tributes on social media, with Wester writing that the light in her eyes was forever gone and that she wished more than anything she could relive the five days she spent with her over and over again.
In July, both Soll and Wester faced charges including two counts of involuntary manslaughter, one count of child endangerment, and one count of cocaine possession, with the first manslaughter count explicitly alleging that the infant’s death was a direct result of committing or attempting to commit child endangerment.
Public commentary across news platforms and social media threads expressed intense outrage over the parents’ emotional online tributes while hiding the drug exposure, heavy condemnation of their prison terms as far too lenient given the horrific neglect, and profound heartbreak for the ultimate vulnerability of eight-day-old Emilia.
