Brandy Bussey, the East Texas woman accused of smoking methamphetamine while her 2-year-old daughter was in the same room, will plead guilty this week and let a jury decide her punishment, the prosecutor said today.
Bussey, 26, of Hallsville will plead guilty to delivery of a controlled substance and endangering a child. The seven-man, five-woman jury that will hear details of the case could impose a sentence ranging from probation to 20 years in prison, Harrison County District Attorney Joe Black said.
Bussey is currently on bond. Her daughter is in the custody of the state and any visitation is under child protective services supervision, Black said.
Prosecutors have a videotape, secretly recorded by a police informant, that shows Bussey and a man using drugs while her daughter lies on a couch less than eight feet away. Authorities said people in the room were loading syringes, using drugs and cursing. Bussey can be heard on the tape referring to her daughter several times.
Prosecutors said the child tested positive for drugs in her system, apparently from being exposed to second-hand smoke.
The man in the video received an 18-month sentence for endangering a child, Black said.
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