Letter tells family to have 'retarded' autistic son 'euthanized'

A Canadian woman was visiting her mother in Ontario on Friday when she received what she says was a hate-filled letter saying that her autistic son should be euthanized because he was "retarded" and a "nuisance."

Mother Karla Begley told Sun News that the letter said that the grandmother should "do the right thing and move or euthanize" 13-year-old Maxwell.

"Personally, they should take whatever non retarded [sic] body parts he possesses and donate it to science," the letter writer, who claimed to live in the same neighborhood, said. "What the hell else good is he to anyone!!!"

The person also complained about Maxwell's "noise polluting whaling [sic]" that "scares the hell out of my normal children!!!!"

"It's disgusting," Begley explained to Sun News. "I can't imagine thinking those thoughts, let alone writing them down for other people to see. It's scares us for his safety."

On Tuesday, a statement from Durham Regional Police said that the letter did not meet the Crown’s threshold for a hate crime.

"Despite the hateful language used, the Crown Attorney’s office has advised that the content of the letter falls below the threshold for a hate crime," the statement noted. "However, there are other Criminal Code issues that are being considered."

Watch this video from City News, broadcast Aug. 19, 2013.

Watch this video from Sun News.

Watch this video from CBC, broadcast Aug. 20, 2013.