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Bench Warrants Issued for SF Parents Now Charged With Murder in Toddler’s Fentanyl Death

The case marks San Francisco's first homicide filing tied to a fatal fentanyl overdose.

Overview

  • A San Francisco judge issued no-bail bench warrants after Michelle Price and Steve Ramirez missed a Thursday hearing on upgraded charges, according to court records and their attorneys.
  • District Attorney Brooke Jenkins filed an amended complaint Wednesday charging the pair with second-degree murder and alleging willful harm resulting in a child’s death, upgrading earlier child-endangerment counts.
  • The medical examiner found no signs of physical trauma and ruled the cause of death acute fentanyl toxicity, with toxicology showing lethal fentanyl and naloxone (Narcan) in the 2-year-old’s bloodstream.
  • Police reported fentanyl and drug paraphernalia left within the child’s reach and a used Narcan container at the scene, and prosecutors say blood tests showed high levels of fentanyl and methamphetamine in both adults.
  • Jenkins says the theory is a conscious disregard for human life, a stance drawing pushback from harm-reduction advocates, as records show prior CPS investigations into the household and the city tallied more than 600 overdose deaths in 2025.