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People in the News

Thursday, October 23, 2025

People in the News

Thursday, October 23, 2025

Toddler intoxication

By Kendria Brown, NDG Intern

Valerie Marie Topete

Too much to drink? What about too young to drink – and I am not talking about your typical underage drinking.  I am talking about toddler intoxication. That is what happened when an Arizonian mother in Phoenix served her 2 year-old a beer.

Valerie Marie Topete was in a restaurant with her son, she decided to pour him some beer in his sipping cup, after which he was seen taking a drink. Nearby witnesses saw this and the police were called.

When asked by authorities about this behavior, Topete responded she only complied with the 2-year-old’s demands, who insisted on having some beer as he continually reached for the beer-filled pitcher. After the content in the cup was confirmed to be beer, the child was taken to the hospital for precautionary purposes and later released to his father.

Topete is in custody for probable child abuse.

This case is a good example of bad parenting. Sure two year olds are demanding, but there has to be a line drawn. I mean you are the parent and hopefully an adult right? No child should tell you what to do because he has no concept of the consequences will not be the sitting in jail. If a 15 year-old is not old enough to make decisions on alcohol consumption than what sane person thinks that simply because a toddler is annoyingly demanding something he should receive it?

Maybe Topete will now understand beer and toddlers do not mix! Only spells out trouble.