I have received a very interesting comment from the aunt of the woman, Cassie Haslam, who let her three dogs and a cat to starve to death in a mobile home. On conviction she was handed down a very lenient sentence by the judge (Turner) sitting at the Spartanburg court. You can read the story if you click on this link (a new window opens).
Cassie’s aunt, Darlene, is the person who called animal control in October. This is the comment on this website:
“Michael, I am the one who called animal control in Oct..This POS woman is my niece..Her problem is that she has never had to answer to anyone for her actions her whole life…She inherited a half million when she turned 18 and spent it in 6 yrs..now owes the IRS thousands which they don’t seem to care about…she lost her Mom in 2014,not that she really cared about anyone other than herself..I knew for a long time that she was abusing pain killers..but when she lost all that money I discovered she was stealing her grandmothers pain pills and her money..I stepped in to stop her…this is when I discovered the abuse of her animals..I do wish I had broke the law and stole the animals but I thought the treat of having them taken away would wake her up…You can’t help a drug addict until they can admit they are a drug addict.”
As you can see, Cassie inherited $500,000 when she turned 18. She burned through that inheritance in six years. She is now indebted to the Inland Revenue. She is also addicted to painkillers. She lost her mum in 2014.
The comment in fact says it all so I’ll stop there. The truth of the matter is that this woman became very selfish, inward looking and hedonistic. She appears to have totally lost any sensitivity and respect for others.
This may shed some light on how she was able to starve her pets to death. I had asked how a person could do this and Darlene has provided some answers.
Perhaps her troubled background, which would have come out in court when her lawyer made a plea in mitigation, had an impact upon the judge. We don’t know what happened in court. We don’t know what her lawyer said. But it is the kind of thing that a lawyer would have stated.
Personally, I don’t condone these sorts of arguments in mitigation. But like I say Darlene’s comment sheds light on this disturbing case.
Please search using the search box at the top of the site. You are bound to find what you are looking for.
I only read a small portion, but I have to say that anyone who knew that Cassandra was an addict (like her aunt) should have taken steps to remove any animals from her home and had her involuntarily admitted to a treatment facility. I find that most fault lied with those who knew that she was an out-of-control addict and not rational. Would they have allowed her to have an infant in her care? I doubt it.
I tried to get her to go to rehab but you first have to get the addict to admit they are an addict..she has no one around her who cares what she does to herself..she is a very accomplished lier..been doing it her whole life.
She has a grandmother who protects her at all cost..I was fighting a losing battle trying to find her rock bottom so she would get help..
And her grandmother,who is my mother in law,was right there bailing her out at every turn. She has paid all her fines so far and would have paid anything to get her out of jail.It doesn’t matter that Cassie has lied to her,has made her pay her bills,has stole her pain meds,has stole her money,has pawned her jewelry,has destroyed her car. There is nothing she could do to stop her grandmother from giving her the money she wants. I need Dr. Phil to help grandma to see the light..
Understand completely. As they say, hindsight is 20/20.
Bless Grandma, even though she was an enabler. She couldn’t have reasoned that the best solution would have been to call the Sheriff’s Department to raid the home and, forcibly, place Cassie in custody and her fate decided at a later date. So tragic.
I don’t know about Florida but you can’t just call the Sheriff to come arrest someone in S.C. without proof of a crime.If only you could. It’s not even considered animal abuse here if you keep your pets in your home and never let them outside. All you have to do is give them food and water and clean up after them.
Not talking about an arrest. In most states, there is a procedure to have someone who is a danger to themselves or others (even animals) involuntarily committed to a mental health facility for a period of time. In most cases, only a law enforcement officer and someone acquainted with the situation (you) are required to attest to the gravity of the situation. I’ve checked S.C.laws and they are pretty much the same.
Can’t understand why not one caring person, who may have loved her and animals, didn’t have the guts to come forward to help in this way.
An arrest could have been avoided by an involuntary commitment to a treatment facility.
There is no excuse for what she did..She was given 3 months to do the right thing for these animals..She was offered help to find them a new home…The law in S.C. allows first time felony convictions to go through a program to help them change their ways..Karma is coming her way I promise you this..It will rain down on her soon.
Hi Darlene. I don’t want to sound soft, but I say that Cassandra couldn’t have complied to any ruling. She was an active, using addict with no gauge on life at all. It seems that others around her knew what was going on and didn’t intervene at all. Like, with most addicts, it must have been obvious that she wasn’t even feeding herself (don’t let that pic fool you – I would love to see her mug shots), much less any animal.
This is a very, very hideous human being. I’d rather befriend a cockroach than admit I’d even known her. What an embarrassment.
Hi Albert. This young woman was an active, using addict and out of control. I hold the people around her who knew this and did nothing as being responsible.
I can’t even read this.
Just too much for me to understand how anyone could…
Yes it is tough. I’ll try and do some happy stuff today.
Kisses, M.
There are times when I think my heart will burst from the pain caused by humans.