P.E.I. connection
Young man with P.E.I. ties loses life New Year’s Day
Young man with P.E.I. ties loses life New Year’s Day in Halifax.
A Nova Scotia man with family connections to P.E.I. died of an apparent drug overdose early New Year’s Day.
The funeral for Jesse Alexander Smith, 24, will be held today in Dartmouth, N.S.
Smith is the son of Don Smith of Canoe Cove, P.E.I., and Jodi Smith of Dartmouth.
Police say a Dartmouth man failed to get help for Smith when he took an overdose.
Jesse Raymond Gaetz, 23, is charged with criminal negligence causing death after Smith died in hospital.
Police were called to a home in Dartmouth at about 1:20 a.m. on Jan. 1, and later arrested Gaetz.
A GoFundMe page titled “In Loving Memory of Jessie Smith’’ was set up on Saturday with a goal of raising $5,000. That goal was surpassed in less than 24 hours.
“Words are hardly adequate to measure the sorrow felt at your loss,’’ one post reads.
“You (affected) everyone around you. Every time I saw you, there was a smile on your face. The world should be thankful that it had you in it, even for a short time.’’