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Pittsburgh mother, man face charges after 6-week-old baby tests positive for cocaine

PITTSBURGH — A Pittsburgh mother and a man are facing charges after doctors found cocaine in the system of a 6-week-old baby.

Lindsey Satterfield, 38, took her baby to a doctor’s appointment because he kept vomiting. The doctor determined he was a pound underweight from his last appointment.

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The baby was rushed to the hospital, where he underwent tests to determine the cause. It was during a regular urinalysis that cocaine was discovered in his system. The baby was admitted to the hospital.

Police searched the home of Satterfield and Matthew Bell, 43, along Woodbourne Avenue in Brookline.

Inside the home, police found loose pills, stamp bags of heroin, syringes, used crack pipes and scales, according to court documents.

During an interview with police, Bell said that when he and Satterfield used crack cocaine last week, the baby was sitting in his baby swing in the living room.

He said both he and Satterfield touched the baby after touching the crack cocaine and the crack pipe, according to the criminal complaint. Bell further said he assumed that was how the baby tested positive for cocaine.

People who live in the neighborhood are shocked.

“It’s sad for the child. I hope the child gets help and I hope they get help too,” explained resident Tiffanie Marshall.

Marshall is a mother and in recovery. She is nine months clean and wants to encourage others who may be struggling to get help.

“It took me a while. You have to accept it and it took me a while but once you do, you’ll never regret it,” she said. “If you keep going down the same path it’s just a long cycle, being in the criminals system. It’s a constant cycle. You have to break that cycle.”

Both Satterfield and Bell were taken to the Allegheny County Jail. Both are facing several charges, including endangering the welfare of children and aggravated assault.

It’s unclear what the relationship is between Bell and the infant.