Shalea Sanders, the daughter of Latarsha Sanders, the city woman accused of stabbing her two young children to death in a "Voodoo ritual," spoke Thursday night before a vigil for Edson and Lason that drew hundreds of city residents to the stretch of Prospect Street in front of the pale blue, three-story building. The twinkle of hand-held candles cast a warm glow across the faces of the gathered, reflecting in the tears that ran down many of them.
BROCKTON – “This lady in this picture is not my mother,” said 27-year-old Shalea Sanders through tears as she stood on the porch of 245 Prospect St., flanked by her family. “I don’t know who this lady in this picture is.”
Just days before, the bodies of her two young brothers, Edson Brito, 8, and Lason Brito, 5, were found in the building’s third-floor apartment where they lived with their mother, Latarsha Sanders.
Sanders, 43, was arrested and charged with killing the pair Monday, after police said she confessed to stabbing them to death as part of a “Voodoo ritual,” court documents show. Family members told investigators that Sanders was obsessing over the Illuminati conspiracy theory and was mentally unstable. She pleaded not guilty in Brockton District Court on Tuesday to two counts of murder.
Shalea Sanders spoke Thursday night before a vigil for Edson and Lason that drew hundreds of city residents to the stretch of Prospect Street in front of the pale blue, three-story building. The twinkle of hand-held candles cast a warm glow across the faces of the gathered, reflecting in the tears that ran down many of them.
"They came over every other day, we'd go down the street to the park. I loved them," Shalea said. "It's just hard for me to ... I'm still thinking they're upstairs, waiting for me to come bring my dog upstairs. It's not real to me right now, I'm thinking they're here, my brothers. My mother, I don't know."
Other members of her family, including her father and brother, described Sanders as a loving, devoted mother who at some point lost her way.
Mayor Bill Carpenter called the boys’ murder an “unspeakable tragedy.”
“I know over the last few days many of us have tried to wrap our hands around it and try to understand it,” Carpenter said. “No matter how hard you try, it just doesn’t make any sense. But it’s important tonight that the family knows the city is behind them. This entire city is mourning the loss of those two beautiful young children.”
City Councilor at-large Moises Rodrigues said a donation fund was being set up through the Cape Verdean Association to establish a scholarship in Edson and Lason’s names. He highlighted the problem of mental health in the community and said it must be acknowledged and confronted.
“It’s important to have friends and neighbors to do that,” he said.
Bishop-Elect Orlando Harris of the New Life Christian Church in Brockton, who led the vigil, urged those in attendance to take action or let someone know if they notice a loved one acting strangely.
“My charge to you is to do me a favor: If you ever see or hear about some strange behaviors going on with me or my family… call someone! Check on me. And I’m going to do the same thing,” he said, noting the existence of an anonymous tip line. “If you see anything going on that’s in your opinion not right, we ask, don’t ignore it.”
Harris also denounced the practice of Voodoo in the city, to cheers from the crowd. In prayer, he urged attendees not to judge Sanders too harshly and to address their personal and family problems head on.
“In the end, God, this family will continue on,” he said. “Edson is smiling down tonight, yes, Lason is smiling down tonight, because they have brought us together.”