The Atlanta Journal-Constitution
DFCS previously investigated mom of girl who died in fire
Agency opened a case in 2019 over concerns of neglect.
Georgia’s Division of Family and Children Services had prior contact with the mother of a 4-year-old girl found dead in a fire at an East Point apartment last week, the agency confirmed Tuesday.
The fire broke out the day before Thanksgiving at an apartment complex along Washington Road. The blaze spread quickly, fire officials said, and left the building gutted and in ruins. Once it was extinguished, fire crews found the deceased toddler in a bedroom of the upstairs apartment.
She was identified by DFCS as Gabrielle Jackson, but the Fulton County Medical Examiner’s Office said it could take at least a month before it can officially confirm the child’s identity.
The girl’s twin sister also was injured, sustaining burns to her hands, arms and portions of her face, according to officials. She is staying with her grandmother.
The girls’ mother, 27-yearold Nicole Ashley Jackson, was first thought to have been a victim of the fire, but after an extensive search of what was left of the home and after discovering that possible accelerants were used, a lookout bulletin for Jackson was sent to area law enforcement. She was located Friday along Fulton Industrial Boulevard and arrested, authorities said.
DFCS “dropped the ball on this one,” the children’s grandmother, Sylear Jackson, wrote in a Gofundme campaign. “Everything leading up to this moment could’ve been avoided had (DFCS) done their job and followed proper protocol.”
The state agency did not directly address that allegation. It did, however, confirm that a case involving Jackson over possible concerns of neglect had been opened in September 2019 in Rabun County and another in Greene County after the family moved there.
“We worked with the mother again this spring and had no reason to believe Gabrielle was in imminent danger when that case was closed in June,” a spokesperson for the department said in a statement. “This loss is heartbreaking, and our deepest condolences go out to Gabrielle’s loved ones.”
The agency said it is working closely with law enforcement to ensure the safety and well-being of Nicole Jackson’s other children.
It is not clear what the nature of the alleged neglect was or how the cases were resolved, as the department did not disclose that information.
Nicole Jackson faces multiple charges, including malice murder, felony murder, criminal attempt to commit murder and two counts of first-degree cruelty to children. The prosecution anticipates filing additional charges as the investigation moves forward.
As the fire was burning that day, a neighbor, Ricardo Tolbert, rushed in to help. Since the door was locked, he busted a window and went inside, he told Channel 2 Action News.
”I noticed the baby’s arms on the couch, so I reached in and grabbed her and pulled her out,” he said about the surviving twin.
He then ran back in but the fire had escalated into an inferno, with flames rolling out of the door, he said.