Fundraiser Started For Slain Chicago Girl, 8, As Mom Faces Charges

CHICAGO — The aunt of an 8-year-old Chicago girl who police said was killed by her mother by asphyxiation last week has started a fundraising effort to help pay for the girl’s funeral.

Sabrina Cooper started the GoFundMe effort for her niece, Amaria Osby, who was found dead inside an apartment in Chicago’s Uptown neighborhood. Andreal Hagler, 38, was charged with first-degree murder on Thursday and was denied bond by a judge on Friday.

Amaria was found in the apartment in the 4600 block of North Winthrop Avenue on Wednesday, police said. Prosecutors at Hagler’s bond hearing said that the girl begged her mother to stop when Hagler placed a plastic bag over her daughter’s head and told her “it was their time.”

According to prosecutors, Hagler made the reference to the date because both she and her daughter were born on the 24th. Police and medical examiner officials said that the girl was found to have bruises on her leg and had been asphyxiated. The cause of the girl's death was determined to be multiple injuries due to assault, the Cook County Medical Examiner's office said on Friday.

Hagler was found in the apartment and had PCP in her system, and was taken to a local hospital after being found along with the girl by Amaria’s uncle. Police and prosecutors said that the family had recently been visited by an investigator from the Department of Family and Child Services, and prosecutors said Friday that Hagler feared that her daughter did not love her anymore and preferred to be with her father.

“This little angel seems to touch many hearts in such a short time on this earth,” Sabrina Cooper wrote on the GoFundMe page. “Amaria was a very smart and intelligent 8-year-old kid that was loved by many. My heart is broken due to this horrific act.”

As of Tuesday, the GoFundMe effort has raised more than $2,000 toward a $10,000 goal.

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