Intelligencer Journal/Lancaster New Era

Women charged with endangering children
BY TOM KNAPP, Staff Writer

Two women face charges after police allegedly found one of them injecting herself with heroin while two children slept in the car with her.

Madie L. Fritz, 25, of Charlestown Road, was arrested at 7:21 p.m. Jan. 26 after police say they found her using drugs in a parked vehicle in the 2000 block of Fruitville Pike.

According to Manheim Township police, an officer observed Fritz injecting something into her arm with a hypodermic needle as the children -- both under 2 years of age -- were sleeping in the back seat.

The mother of the children -- identified as Beth A. Biagio, 24, of Eden Road -- was found by police in a nearby store and brought back to the vehicle, where police said numerous items of drug paraphernalia, including needles and heroin packets, were found in a diaper bag.

Biagio was charged with endangering the welfare of children and possession of drug paraphernalia. She was released pending a summons.

Fritz was turned over to the county sheriff's department on an outstanding bench warrant and has been charged with two counts of endangering the welfare of children and one count of possession of drug paraphernalia. Complaints were filed before District Judge David Miller. The children were turned over to other family members.