A Baltimore woman has been charged with second-degree murder after confessing that she gave her two grandchildren doses of methadone in order to help them fall asleep.

Authorities say Towanda Reaves, 50, confessed that she rubbed this powerful pain killer on the gums of her one-year old grandson and two-year old granddaughter.

The former died as a result of the incident.

Reaves reportedly turned over an empty bottle of the dangerous medicine - which is often given to heroin addicts to manage their cravings for opiates and ease the symptoms of withdrawal - to police.

Neighbors, meanwhile, were stunned by the development and insisted that Reaves had no ill intentions.

“She really took care of them. As far as I can see, she wasn’t a bad person,” one women told a local CBS affiliate.

Reaves is due in court for a preliminary hearing on August 29.