A Lubbock jury found 33-year-old Adam Canales Jr. guilty of manslaughter after the 2021 death of his 2-month-old daughter, who died of a Benadryl overdose. Adam and his wife, Sarah, had both admitted to giving the baby Benadryl—and in Sarah’s case, ZzzQuil and cold medicine too—to knock their kids out so they could sleep or have “quality time.”
At first, Adam told investigators he only gave the baby gas drops. That story fell apart when the autopsy revealed “mixed drug toxicity.” Eventually, he admitted to dosing her with Benadryl at least twice that day—despite knowing infants aren’t supposed to have it. Prosecutors said this wasn’t a one-time lapse but part of a grim pattern: the couple routinely drugged their kids for convenience.
The defense tried to spin it as a communication breakdown—basically, “oops, we didn’t realize we were both drugging the baby at the same time.” The jury didn’t buy it. Adam was convicted of manslaughter, and Sarah’s case is still pending.
Forget bedtime stories—in Lubbock, it’s apparently NyQuil, Benadryl, and a dash of ZzzQuil. Sweet dreams? Not so much.
