JASON and HARLEY BRADFORD - 2 yo and 16 months - / Accused: Mother, Tassie Anne Behrens - La Mesa, CA

Pictured: The dead toddler siblings who drowned in pool 'while mother was asleep in a house where convicted felon was growing marijuana for sale'

By Rachel Quigley and Snejana Farberov PUBLISHED:09:09 EST, 15 May 2013

Authorities in California are considering whether to seek criminal charges against a mother in connection to the deaths of her two young children, who apparently drowned in the pool of a friend as she slept indoors.

The children, identified as 2-year-old Jason Bradford and his 16-month-old sister, Harley, were found floating in the pool of a La Mesa rental home Monday.

Little Harley was pronounced dead just before 10.30am, while her older brother lived for another 13 hours before succumbing to his injuries. Authorities suspect both children drowned.

Angles: Harley and Jason Bradford (pictured) have died after being found floating in a pool of a Le Mesa, California, home

The children's mother, Tassie Anne Behrens, 26, was asleep when her two toddlers ended up in the pool

Fateful decision: Behrens (right) and a male friend decided to drive her dying kids to a fire station instead of a hospital because she was afraid to get the man in trouble

The toddlers were discovered unresponsive in the water by their mother, 26-year-old Tassie Anne Behrens, at around 9.45am at the home of a friend on Sunset Avenue where the family had been staying for several days, UTSanDiego.com reported.

Posts on Behrens' Facebook page paint a portrait of a young woman who had been struggling with the responsibilities of raising two children on her own, especially while recovering from a broken ankle last month.  

'This is so crazy chasing after 2 babies when I cannot even walk on my own,' she wrote April 13. 'At least I can take cast on and off.If anyone feels like helping me by giving me a break from chasing kids around feel free to message me.lol'

In a message posted a day earlier, the 26-year-old lamented that no one offered her a helping hand, and she has vowed to do 'absolutely everything' on her own.

'Its [sic]only me n[sic] my two babies. the loves of my life,' Behrens wrote.

On Monday, Behrens told investigators that she woke up that morning to discover her children unresponsive in the pool. She and a male friend put both kids in a truck and headed to a hospital, but instead decided to take them to La Mesa Fire Station 13 about 15 minutes away.

Stressed: Behrens wrote on her Facebook page about her struggles of raising two young children on her own

Firefighters at the station were unable to revive the toddlers, and they were rushed to Sharp Grossmont Hospital, where Harley was pronounced dead at 10.27am. Her brother was transferred to Rady Children's Hospital, where he died at 11.25pm.

Behrens later told detectives that the reason she did not call 911 but rather chose to drive her dying children to a fire station is because she did not want to get her friend in trouble for failing to install a fence around the pool, according to Lt. Glenn Giannantonio.

The unnamed male companion was last seen leaving the fire station on foot, and police are currently looking for him.

The 26-year-old mother initially lied to officials by saying that the children were found in a pool in a Spring Valley mobile home park, but later admitted that they were discovered at the Le Mesa home.

Larry Dangelo, 44, who lives at the Sunset Avenue residence along with another man, was later arrested on suspicion of running a marijuana-growing operation out of the basement at the house.

At least 60 marijuana plants and drug-making equipment were seized by members of the regional Narcotics Task Force.

Dangelo is being held on $50,000 after being charged with multiple counts, including possession of pot for sale.

Court records obtained by the paper show Dangelo has a criminal record dating back to 2000, which included 18 charges ranging from forgery of documents to burglary.

He pleaded guilty to three counts of second-degree burglary and was sentenced to three years' probation after spending a years in jail.

Detectives do not believe that Dangelo was the person who accompanied Behrens as she drove her children to the fire station.

Behrens' male friend lives in a trailer on the property surrounding the million-dollar Sunset Avenue rental home. Police would like to interview him, although he is not considered a suspect in the toddlers' deaths.

Tall tale: Behrens initially told police that the drownings occurred at a mobile park, but later admitted that it took place at the La Mesa home

Arrested: Larry D'Angelo was led away from his home in handcuffs after being questioned by police about the marijuana plants in his house

The mother of the two children told authorities she had been asleep and woke up to find the two children unconscious in the pool

The incident took place at this La Mesa home of Larry D'Angelo and police later found an illegal pot-growing farm in the basement

When the children were rushed to hospital Monday morning, the 16-month-old girl was pronounced dead on arrival and her brother transferred to Rady Children's Hospital in San Diego.

He was later pronounced dead.

Initially, Behrens told investigators that the incident occurred at a community swimming pool in a nearby mobile home park, the LA Times reports. But she later admitted that she had lied and that the incident occurred at the friend's home.

A search of the home uncovered a marijuana-growing operation and the Narcotics Task Force was called in.

Stash: All of these marijuana plants were found in Larry D'Angelo's home and taken away by narcotics division

Police are still investigating the drowning of the two children but initial reports say that foul play is not suspected

Lt Giannantonio told CBS8: 'She said she initially gave the wrong location because she didn't want her friend who lives at the residence to get in trouble for not having a fence around the pool.'

The pick-up truck the couple brought the children to the fire station in was registered to Dangelo who was later arrested on felony charges of growing marijuana, possession of marijuana for sale, attempted manufacture of a controlled substance, and grand theft.

Sheriff deputies say foul play is not suspected in the drowning. It is not clear if the mother faces any charges.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2324955/Pictured-The-dead-toddler-siblings-drowned-pool-mother-asleep-house-convicted-felon-growing-marijuana-sale.html

Where's the father or father's?  Why wasn't the "male friend" watching the kids?  Was she on drugs?  Why was the pool not covered?  They have a cover now that once set up only takes one person to cover the pool.  It's a net that prevents children from slipping through and drowning.  I think the owner of any pool that a kid drowns in and does not have this cover should be charged with with a murder charge of some sort.  Make these nets mandatory for ALL private pools.  Too bad she was not in my area.  I would have loved to take the children even for a short time.  William

The two year old is holding the bottle for the one year old. These babies were neglected and already learning to depend on each other.

How sad. What piss poor parents.

Tassie Behrens, Calif. mom, arrested on child abuse, drug charges in children's drowning deaths

(CBS) EL CAJON, Calif. - Tassie Behrens, a 26-year-old California woman whose two toddlers drowned at a friend's home four months ago, was arrested Thursday on suspicion of felony child abuse and drug violations in connection with their deaths, CBS affiliate KFMB reports.

Behrens was taken into custody without incident at a motel in El Cajon late Thursday morning in connection with the deaths of her 1-year-old daughter, Harley Bradford, and her 2-year-old son, Jason Bradford, authorities say.

On the morning of May 13, police say Behrens awoke at a home where she was staying in La Mesa and found her children floating unconscious in a backyard pool, Lt. Glenn Giannantonio said, according to the station.

Behrens reportedly pulled them out and she and a friend drove them to a nearby fire station. There, medics tried to revive the toddlers before transporting them to a hospital where they were later pronounced dead.

KFMB reports Behrens first told investigators the children drowned at a mobile-home park in Spring Valley, but later admitted it happened at the La Mesa home. She apparently fabricated the initial story in an attempt to keep her friend from getting into trouble for not having a fence around the pool, Giannantonio said.

During a subsequent search of the house where Behrens and her children had been staying, deputies discovered a marijuana-cultivation setup in a basement area and called in Narcotics Task Force personnel to investigate, he said. A resident of the home, 44-year-old Larry Dangelo, was booked on suspicion of child abuse, cultivation and possession of marijuana for sale, and other charges that evening.

Behrens was not arrested until Thursday on criminal counts in connection with her children's deaths. She was booked into Las Colinas women's jail in Santee and is being held without bail pending arraignment on Monday.

The children's father is serving a 60-month federal prison sentence in Phoenix for conspiracy to traffic in methamphetamine, reports the station.

http://www.cbsnews.com/8301-504083_162-57603874-504083/tassie-behrens-calif-mom-arrested-on-child-abuse-drug-charges-in-childrens-drowning-deaths/

I was right about the drugs.  They were more important that the lives and welfare of those two little angels.  Sad that a mother and father would be that way and that a total stranger like me has more care for them than they.  William