LAWRENCE — For more than 30 years, Darlene Demers Levasseur believed her 3-year-old son died as he slept on her neighbors' couch.
But a phone call 18 months ago shattered that belief — and her life.
The caller, a woman, told her that she was there the night Levasseur's son, Joseph "JoJo" Demers, died. She was just a girl at the time, a relative of the husband and wife who were looking after JoJo. And she said she saw the man beat JoJo to death.
The woman, a struggling heroin addict, initially agreed to go to Lawrence police and tell her story. But she later recanted her account of the boy's death, halting police work on the case. Levasseur said the woman told her she backed off because she feared for her life.
Levasseur, now a 50-year-old Hampstead, N.H., resident, is pushing authorities to dig deeper into JoJo's death, and she is going public with the story in the hope it will jog someone's memory — or conscience — and help find justice for JoJo.
"Do you know what it's like to go to bed and see this happening to your child?" asked Levasseur. "I relive this every single day."
Officially, JoJo Demers' death remains under investigation by District Attorney Jonathan Blodgett's office. No suspect or person of interest has been publicly identified.
JoJo's death
In 1977, Levasseur was 19 years old and living on Cross Street. On the night of Oct. 1, 1977, she left her son with a neighboring couple who were good friends and went out on a dinner date, taking her 8-month-old daughter, Chrystal, with her.
About 9 the next morning, Levasseur heard "god-awful screams" and flew to the couple's apartment.
JoJo was lifeless on the couch.
Levasseur said she was hysterical but remembers asking the couple why her little boy was covered in bruises. She said she was told the bruising was caused by the husband's efforts to revive the boy.
Levasseur said her son was pronounced dead about 11:15 a.m. at Bon Secours Hospital, now Caritas Holy Family, in Methuen
JoJo's obituary in The Eagle-Tribune listed as the cause of death a slight edema of the brain, or swelling caused by an abnormal accumulation of fluid. A hospital report indicates that staff members suspected the child might have been "battered," and the medical examiner's death certificate listed the cause as "Under Investigation."
It is unclear how extensive an investigation was conducted, but Levasseur said she was never told what killed JoJo.
Neighborhood lore had it that he had died of lead paint poisoning.
Levasseur said she spent the days after her son's death in a fog of medication.
"I cried and prayed to God this was a mistake," she said.
Over the years, she continued to mourn for JoJo.
Then on Nov. 13, 2006, the woman who claimed she had witnessed the death called Levasseur.
She said she "couldn't live with herself anymore." Just 10 years old when JoJo died, she said she was now a mother herself and thought of JoJo when she tucked her own kids into bed.
She told Levasseur that 3-year-old JoJo was beaten when he accidentally wet himself as he lay on the couch, Levasseur said.
That November 2006, Levasseur and her estranged husband, Kenny Demers, and their daughter Chrystal, JoJo's younger sister, met with detectives at the Lawrence police station. They told the officers about the phone call from the woman.
Three days later, detectives went to the woman's home to talk to her. She was extremely nervous but confirmed "these allegations were true," according to a police report.
The woman told police she was fearful of coming forward, but police asked her to come to the Lawrence police station "to give a complete and recorded interview on this matter."
She never showed up.
The woman has also declined to return several messages from The Eagle-Tribune in recent weeks.
The man who Levasseur believes beat her son to death moved out of state and could not be traced; his wife is dead.
Under investigation
Levasseur, however, is not the only person who has heard the woman's account of JoJo's death.
Jeannie Croswell, 49, a former Lawrence woman who now lives in Methuen and has known Levasseur for years, said she ran into the woman at a medical clinic and was told JoJo had been beaten.
"I was shocked. I thought he died of lead paint poisoning in his sleep," Croswell said. "She was shaking when she told me what happened."
Blodgett, the district attorney, said he could offer little comment for this story because the toddler's death is under investigation.
"We are trying to develop some information," Blodgett said.
He said older, unsolved cases are routinely reviewed by state troopers assigned to his office.
"They are never forgotten," he said.
Levasseur said the thought that her son was slain has made her life "a living hell."
She said she is seeing a psychiatrist and takes medication for anxiety. She has also joined a support group for parents of murdered children.
"It's just so unimaginable to hear what really happened," she said. "I feel like I'm mourning the death of my child all over from day one," she said.
She urged all parents to "be aware of every person your child comes in contact with." She also asked that anyone with information about her son's death call her at 603-489-1475 or e-mail her at ashes4812@yahoo.com.
Anyone with information about JoJo's death can also contact state police detectives at 978-745-8908.
Staff reporter Jill Harmacinski can be reached at 978-946-2209 or by e-mail at JHarmacinski@eagletribune.com.
