'A pain I can't describe': Woman still grieving daughter's overdose death

13-year-old was found unresponsive on Sept. 4, 2023 after a drug overdose at her father's home It's been a long, difficult week for the mother of 13-year-old Jocelynn Firlotte-Lowe, who died as the result of a fentanyl-related overdose three years ago today. Sarah Lowe has been replaying the series of events leading up to her daughter's tragic death on Sept. 4, 2023, when she was found unresponsive at her father's home on Albert Street West. At first, Lowe assumed that her daughter had been arrested when detectives knocked on her door at about 9 p.m. that night — until she learned that Firlotte-Lowe was gone. 'I didn't believe it at first, and then it was just shock,' Lowe recalled. 'I remember falling to the ground — just disbelief and pain. 'A pain I can't describe.' Lowe is often left to think about what her daughter has 'missed out on in life,' including trips to camp and the outdoor adventures they would've embarked on together. 'I might have given her birth, but she gave me life,' Lowe said. 'She made me who I am. She made me want to do things — she made me want to do things for her. 'I'm not happy in life anymore. I have happy moments — there's just always that missing feeling.' The death of Firlotte-Lowe has altered her mother's life drastically. Largely unable to work, Lowe has been in therapy and participating in grief support groups in order to cope. She says her overwhelming grief is a 'forever feeling' that doesn't go away. 'I have great family and support everywhere, but nothing fills that missing feeling,' Lowe said. Next year, Firlotte-Lowe's father will stand trial for his alleged role in his daughter's death. On March 5, 2025, detectives with the Sault Ste. Marie Police Service arrested Paul Firlotte, who was charged with manslaughter and held in custody pending a bail hearing. None of the allegations have been tested in court and Firlotte is considered innocent until proven guilty. Firlotte's manslaughter case has since been transferred to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice — reserved for the most serious criminal offences in the province. The 43-year-old was released on bail in May with a number of conditions, including an order to stay away from residences where children under 18 are present. Lowe says every delay in the long, drawn-out court case has felt like a 'kick to the stomach.' 'It's just hard,' she said. 'There will never be closure, but at least maybe it will settle better with everybody.' As previously reported by SooToday, Firlotte is also embroiled in a lawsuit over his daughter's death. Last year, the girl's family members launched a $3-million civil suit against Firlotte, the Children's Aid Society of Algoma, and the owner of the property where she died. The plaintiffs — Firlotte-Lowe's mother, maternal grandmother and aunt — claim all of the defendants were negligent in their responsibility to ensure the girl's safety leading up to her death, which has been attributed to fentanyl, methamphetamine and bromazolam intoxication. The allegations contained in the lawsuit have not been tested in court and Firlotte is presumed innocent until proven guilty. Taking into consideration everything she's heard or seen — from the coroner's report to accounts from detectives — Lowe says the house on Albert Street West where her daughter died was 'a house where many addicts lived.' 'I wouldn't let a child go in just by seeing the outside,' she added. Lowe describes her daughter as a 'big-hearted girl' — which may have posed a problem for her. 'One of the reasons she wanted to stay with her father, even when she ran away, was because she wanted to help him get better,' Lowe said. She is now thinking about compiling her daughter's poems in hopes of getting them published, with proceeds going towards helping children living with mental illness. 'She had had her problems, but she had a good life — and when she wasn't depressed, she thrived,' Lowe said. Firlotte is scheduled to be tried before a judge in a Sault Ste. Marie courtroom in June 2027.