A Glendale couple is facing child abuse charges after police say they found a grow operation and fresh drugs just feet away from their one-year old’s crib.
Court documents reveal Department of Child Safety workers received a tip that Ethan and Sarah Waters were selling weed from their home near 59th Avenue and Thunderbird Road.
Ethan Waters says the situation is not what it seems.
“I think it is extreme, no one is willing to listen,” said Waters.
Waters is an advocate for legalizing marijuana. The medical marijuana card holder says the drug can help save lives. He says he started growing the drug out of his garage several months ago when he found out his dad was sick.
“My dad has stage four brain cancer- he’s terminal,” said Waters.
Waters claims he is an aspiring naturalist and doesn’t like pharmaceutical companies.
“In my eyes, I’m making the medicine for my dad, so I knew it was pure and the same all the time. I wanted to give my dad the best chance to survive,” said Waters.
DCS employees and police say when they arrived, they noticed a rack with marijuana buds drying on a rack in Waters’ bedroom. A crib was just a few feet way.
“My son doesn’t use the crib. It just had clothes in it. My son has his own room,” said Waters.
Investigators did find the one-year-old sleeping in a crib in a different room. They also found 30 marijuana plants in the garage outside.
“We were trying to be as careful as possible,” said Waters.
DCS took his son away. Waters denies ever selling the drug.
He says if he knew helping his dad with his cancer would cause his family to break up, he would’ve never done it.
“I wouldn’t have tried to save my dad. Which is sad, because you are supposed to help your family,” said Waters.
The child’s mother is also facing child abuse charges. The one year old did test positive for TCH.
Waters says he has completely stopped growing.
He admitted he has had a long history with marijuana, including spending time in prison for federal drug trafficking charges for trafficking 60 pounds of weed across state lines.
