About five miles from the Alachua County Jail, a methamphetamine lab stood.
At Village Green Apartments, down the hallway from where a 5-year-old boy slept, his mother aided her friend in a meth operation, according to a police report.
Tuesday morning, agents with the Gainesville Alachua County Drug Task Force raided the mother’s apartment and arrested both people.
At about 9 a.m. Tuesday, officers found Casey Marie Rush, 27, in the apartment with her son and her accomplice, according to the report. Inside the ammonia-scented apartment, police found needles, lighter fluid, drain cleaner and test tubes, according to the report.
Steven Duke Bryan, 31, told police he and Rush cooked meth at the residence the night before with Rush’s three children nearby, according to the report.
Rush has a long history of alleged child abuse, according to the report, and she told police that meth labs have a tendency to cause fires and even explosions.
In September 2014, police and agents with the Department of Children and Families discovered there was no food in Rush’s refrigerator. In her children’s room, which smelled strongly of urine, a thin mat functioned as a bed, according to the report.
Then, in April 2015, one of Rush’s children was sexually assaulted, according to the report.
In September 2015, investigators responded to Village Green Apartments yet again. Several anonymous allegations accused Rush of drug use, inadequate care and child abuse, according to the report. This past January, Rush faced allegations of cooking meth and not taking her children to school, according to the report.
No arrests were made, but the investigation continued, according to the report. About a week ago, Rush hid a fugitive in her apartment until he fell through her ceiling in front of police, according to the report.
Tuesday’s arrest marks Rush’s first felony charge.
Her previous citations include driving a 3-year-old child without a car seat, driving without any headlights and unknowingly driving without a license, according to Alachua County court records. On Tuesday, police arrested Rush on three charges of child neglect without great bodily damage and one charge of maintaining a drug dwelling. As of press time, she remains in the Alachua County Jail in lieu of an $80,000 bond.
Bryan was arrested on charges of manufacturing meth with children present, possessing with intent to distribute a controlled substance within 1000 feet of a school and possessing drug paraphernalia.
As of press time, he remains in the Alachua County Jail in lieu of a $155,000 bond.
Contact Martin Vassolo at mvassolo@alligator.org and follow him on Twitter @martindvassolo.
Hazmat workers examine meth lab equipment found inside Village Green Apartments on Tuesday. Police arrested two Gainesville residents they said produced the drug in the same apartment as a 5-year-old boy.
