Grandmother tells House oversight subcommittee CPS failures preceded death of 2-year-old Cassius

Brenda Wellens Watson told the Michigan House oversight subcommittee on child welfare system that her 2-year-old grandson, Cassius, who had Down syndrome, died after she reported injuries to Children's Protective Services on July 21, 2024 and the child was not taken to a hospital for four days.

Watson said she sent photographs of Cassius's injuries as instructed and received an immediate confirmation that the photos had come through. She said the case was handed between workers, her repeated calls went unanswered, and a home visit was never made before Cassius was returned to the mother’s care. "The system, the very one designed to protect our most valuable vulnerable children failed," Watson told the committee, adding, "because of that failure, my grandson is gone."

The committee opened its hearing with Representative Regas moving to approve the minutes of the June 3 meeting; hearing no objection, the minutes were approved. The subcommittee then heard Watson's testimony and several members asked questions about communication, triage and decisionmaking inside CPS.

Why it matters: Watson framed her…