CLARKESVILLE, GA - Around 40 people stood and held signs in downtown Clarkesville at a rally for 19-month-old "Bou Bou" Phonesavanh Saturday.<br />
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Some of the signs included "Stop the war on people" and "Pray for baby Bou Bou."<br />
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People came from as far as away as Perry, Georgia, which is about 185 miles south of Clarkesville.<br />
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Some came specifically for "Bou Bou" and others came because they're opposed to the war on drugs, like Chris Bessette, who lives in Rabun County.<br />
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"People should be able to make their own choices about their own health and not have to be injured or killed while making those choices," said Bessette. "I'm [in favor of] ending the drug war in general, on top of helping this particular child."<br />
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Lafaye Murphy lives in White County, and she says she came out to support "Bou Bou" and to oppose Habersham County Sheriff Joey Terrell.<br />
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"If they would have done their homework [before the drug raid], they would have known there were children inside," said Murphy. "Now they're trying to blame the family, and it's not their fault."<br />
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The crowd did get some heckling from passing cars.<br />
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Some of the shouts included "support our sheriff" and "you can't clean up these drugs by yourself."<br />
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The sheriff's office has maintained that they did nothing wrong, and didn't have knowledge that a child was inside the house.<br />
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The case is now being investigated by the Georgia Bureau of Investigation.<br />
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Phonesavanh is currently at Children's Healthcare of Atlanta.
