'I Just Want Justice For My Baby' | Man Charged In Death Of Girlfriend's 2-Year-Old Son
ESSEX, Md. (WJZ) -- Cassandra Gracholski had a funeral for her son this week, and then her boyfriend was arrested for his murder.
"He was clumsy," Gracholski said.
Inside apartment 2A, Grocholski described her son Damion.
"He was funny. He had the most hysterical facial expressions," she said.
Damion's favorite things were food and dump trucks, and the two-year-old loved his mom.
He died two weeks ago after being left at their Essex home with Grocholski's live-in boyfriend, David Haas.
"He swears up and down he didn't do anything to hurt him," Grocholski said. "He said, 'Cass, you know me, I would never do anything to hurt those kids,"
Charging documents show Haas claimed he left Damion in the shower for just a few minutes, and was facedown when he returned, but the injuries did not support those claims.
"Because (injuries) were so severe, it was clear to the hospital staff and medical examiner that the injuries that child sustained could not have been caused by a fall in a bathtub," said Baltimore County Police Officer Jennifer Peach.
"And then, to find out that he had suffered, was the most devastating news that I've ever gotten. Because he did not deserve it. He did not deserve any of it," Grocholski said.
Haas was arrested Tuesday. He's now charged with first-degree murder and child abuse.
"To me, Dave was never a monster. He was the man that I had loved and my kids had loved," Grocholski said. "Never in a million years did I think this would happen,"
While Grocholski mourns her son's death-- and to a certain extent-- her boyfriend's arrest, she said her priority now is to get to the truth.
"And if the truth is he killed my son, then, it's gonna be a lot to handle, but I just want justice for my baby," She said.
Grocholski said in the three years she was dating Haas, he had never shown signs of any abuse.
Her five-year daughter was home at the time of the incident, but she wasn't harmed.