Son of novelist Paul Auster charged with homicide over baby daughter’s fatal overdose on heroin and fentanyl

Authorities say Daniel Auster admitted to doing drugs on the day of his 10-month-old daughter Ruby’s death in November

Daniel Auster, pictured in 2009 (Getty Images)

Daniel Auster, son of celebrated New York novelist Paul Auster, has been charged with manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide after his infant daughter died from exposure to fentanyl and heroin, according to police.

Mr Auster, 44, was arrested on Friday night, according to the New York Post, in relation to the November death of his 10-month-old daughter Ruby.

According to the New York Police Department (NYPD), Ruby was found motionless on 1 November 2021, after Mr Auster fell asleep while watching her in a Brooklyn home while her mother was at work.

When he awoke, he attempted CPR on Ruby and called 911, according to anonymous sources speaking with the New York Daily News. A nearby hospital was unable to revive the child.

An autopsy showed no signs of physical or internal trauma, while a toxicology report showed an overdose from fentanyl and heroin exposure, the NYPD said. Police say it’s unclear how the child was exposed to drugs.

“The Office of the Chief Medical Examiner has deemed the cause of death to be acute intoxication by the combined effects of fentanyl and heroin,” the NYPD told The Independent in a statement. “The incident has been deemed a homicide after conferral with the Kings County District Attorney’s Office. The following individual has been arrested and charged in regard.”

Mr Auster was arraigned on charges of manslaughter and criminally negligent homicide in Brooklyn on Sunday, where Assistant District Attorney Tien Tran revealed the defendant also gave his daughter Narcan “in case I f**ked up”.

Mr Tran said the child had ingested enough narcotics to “render an adult unconscious”. He said Mr Auster admitted to using heroin during the day of his daughter’s death and that he kept “glassine packets” of the drug in his bathroom.

His father, Paul Auster, is the author of the acclaimed novels like The New York Trilogy and The Book of Illusions. He declined to comment on the charges when approached by the New York Daily News on Saturday.

The Independent has contacted representatives of Paul Auster for comment.

Paul Auster (Rex Features)

Daniel Auster, who has worked as a DJ and photographer, has been arrested before.

In 1998, he pleaded guilty to possession of stolen property and was sentenced to five years’ probation for stealing $3,000 from the dead body of drug Andre “Angel” Melendez, a victim of the “Club Kid Killer” Michael Alig. Melendez’s body was dismembered and thrown in the Hudson River after the killing.

Mr Auster was not implicated in the killling itself, but admitted to being in the apartment where it happened, Reuters reported at the time.

He was also booked for drug possession in 2008 and 2010, and larceny and possession of stolen property in 2009.

As a teen, he became “deeply involved with drugs,” according to The New Yorker.

The Independent has contacted the Brooklyn District Attorney’s office for comment.