Fatal Pain Patch Victim's Birth Mother Sues City

Michelle Gochenaur, the biological mother of the child who died after an overdose of the painkiller fentanyl administered by her foster mother, is suing the City for $50 million.

Six-year-old Taylor Webster (pictured) had complained to her foster mother Joanne Alvarez that her neck hurt. When a children's Motrin allegedly didn't ease the young girl's discomfort, Alvarez applied a transdermal patch containing fentanyl--a powerful opioid painkiller not intended for use on children. Alvarez later found the girl unconscious and the child was declared dead two hours later.

The notice of claim against the City cites "negligent supervision of the foster home... failure to provide the infant with a safe environment, negligent selection and placement" as contributing to the death. Mayor Bloomberg said the other day that ACS should not be blamed, because there was no reason to remove Webster from Alvarez's home, but Gochenauer's lawyer said suits will also be filed against the Administration for Children's Services and foster care placement agency.

Gochenaur is currently a child care worker in Lancaster PA; she abandoned Taylor when the girl was 18 months old and has been in trouble with the law for theft and check forgery. And today, Alvarez, who was charged with criminally negligent homicide, is waiting to hear the grand jury's indictment. Some neighbors suspected she was using narcotics to keep her many children quiet.