Three relatives of two children – a girl who died and a boy who has been hospitalized – have been charged in the death of their 5-year-old relative. A 21-year-old woman and two men ages 27 and 22, are facing charges of aggravated assault and failing to provide the necessaries of life in the case. They are being held in custody and do not yet have scheduled court appearances.
One of the families, a girl named Cassie, was a promising football player and promising pitcher at a private Toronto school. Before she was hospitalized for “a multitude of drug-related causes,” she was in the fifth grade and had been excelling academically. Neighbors said she was “always smiling, always happy.”
“She was just a happy kid, and everybody who knew her was just really shocked to hear this was actually happening,” Olivia Thibault, who is now a classmate, told Toronto’s Sun News Network.
At the time of her death, she was the oldest of five children. Two of the siblings were still in her bed, as her mother laid it down.
Her mother’s sister, Morgan Marie “Mikey” Boulet, was charged last month and is facing multiple charges including manslaughter, assault with a weapon, and assault causing bodily harm.
The second alleged suspect is not related to Cassie but he allegedly has a relationship with her sister, another woman.
Two weeks after Cassie’s death, two other children, also the children of Boulet and another relative, were hospitalized. The cause of their hospitalization is unknown.
A relative of Cassie’s father, who did not want to be identified, said Boulet has known for a long time that she was a user of drugs.
“I mean, that’s a parent’s worst nightmare,” the relative said. “When you’re dealing with drugs, you don’t know what’s going to happen.”