On Saturday, December 25th, 2021, at approximately 8:00 a.m., Denison Police and Denison EMS responded to a call in the 500 block of West Hull Street regarding an unresponsive 11-year-old girl. Upon arrival, they found Harper Butler not breathing and without a pulse. She was transported to a local hospital where she was pronounced dead.
At the time of the incident, the girl's mother, Candice Cooper, reported that her daughter had accidentally ingested her prescribed methadone. However, the investigation into the child's death continued.
In June 2024, detectives received new information indicating that Cooper, 39, had intentionally administered methadone to her daughter. Cooper was re-interviewed and confessed to knowingly dosing her child with methadone, aware of the potential health consequences.
Following this admission, the Dallas Medical Examiner classified the child's death as a homicide. On July 11, 2024, Denison Police detectives obtained an arrest warrant for Cooper. She was taken into custody and charged with murder. Cooper was booked into the Grayson County Jail with a bond set at $1 million.
