Witness tells Michigan House panel CPS failures preceded grandson's death

Brenda Wellens Watson told the Michigan House Oversight Subcommittee on Child Welfare System that delays and repeated handoffs within Children’s Protective Services preceded the death of her 2‑year‑old grandson, Cassius, and she urged legislators to change policies and strengthen oversight.

Watson, the boy's grandmother, said she reported suspected abuse on or about July 21, 2024, sent photos of injuries as instructed and received confirmation the files were received. "Cassius's death was a tragedy. He was a 2 year old with Down Syndrome, unable to speak or walk. Now he's gone," she said during her testimony. She told the committee she called CPS seven times, that the case was moved between caseworkers because one was preparing for maternity leave, and that it took four days before Cassius was taken to a hospital.

The testimony formed the core of the hearing. Watson described having sent photographs of bruising and other injuries and receiving an initial confirmation that the images arrived. She said a hospital visit occurred only after family members transported Cassius there; following that visit, she said, CPS placed the child with a friend of the mother who had recently regained custody of her own children and provided two $25 gift cards and two diapers but no home visit or checks for basic needs.

Committee members pressed Watson about whether she had sought to care for Cassius herself and about the department's procedures. Watson said she had offered to take the child and that her household and finances would have allowed her to do so. "Rather than her investigating the best option for him, she allowed Tierra to make that decision," Watson said, referring to the mother.

Lawmakers and Watson discussed broader system issues at intake and triage. A committee member said the department receives roughly 70,000 calls a year to CPS, a volume the panel's members said can strain investigation and follow‑up. Watson argued the breakdown begins at intake and triage, where she said cases with photo evidence of abuse should prompt immediate action: "Within 24 hours, that child should be in the custody, if not at the hospital," she said.

The committee also heard a brief summary of a separate case from Kent County involving a January 27, 2025, house fire in Grand Rapids that a lawmaker said followed a CPS decision to return children to a mother with ongoing mental‑health concerns; prosecutors later charged a relative in that case with murder, arson and child abuse. Committee members presented that summary as additional context for systemic failures the panel is investigating.

Watson said she has applied to work in the Central Intake Unit for Wayne County to try to help fix the system and described having applied on May 13 and not yet receiving a hiring response. She also named Director Hertel and Director Duane Haywood as agency leaders she believes are committed to change but said "without structural change, their hands are tied."

Committee members offered condolences and asked for more information and follow‑up. Representative Regas (chair) told members to bring forward ideas for statutory changes the panel could recommend. No formal votes or directives were recorded at the hearing; the committee adjourned after the testimony.

Watson concluded by urging lawmakers to strengthen accountability and oversight so that similar tragedies do not recur. "I didn't come here just to share what happened. I came to make sure that it never happens again," she said.