Several hundred friends, relatives and complete strangers have said goodbye to Katelynn Sampson, the seven-year-old Toronto girl found dead in a Parkdale apartment last week.

Some mourners screamed in anguish when they saw the child's body in her open casket at Bonar-Parkdale Presbyterian Church on Tuesday afternoon. Makeup could not cover all of the girl's injuries.

Katelynn's mother Bernice Sampson wept throughout the service. Many parishioners did the same as they held their children tightly.

"What could she have done to deserve that?" one man asked outside the church.

"Katelynn was a sweet girl. She always said hi to me," said a young girl.

Rev. Harry Klassen said Katelynn will live on in the hearts of those who loved her, and her death represents an important message about children who are knowingly being abused but not helped.

That message was echoed by close family friend Tracey Rodda outside the church.

"In Katelynn's death, she's speaking out to us to ask us to end violence and addiction and abuse," Rodda said.

"We can't forget. To forget is to not do anything, and something has to be done to stop this type of stuff from happening."

Ontario's opposition parties and the province's child advocate have called for an inquest into Katelynn's death and an overhaul of the Children's Law Reform Act.

Irwin Elman, Ontario's advocate for children and youth, said the laws that are supposed to protect kids "all failed" the little girl.

Police discovered Katelynn dead in a West Lodge Drive apartment on Aug. 3. The girl was covered with bruises, but officials have not said what she died of.

The lead homicide investigator described the child's injuries as the worst thing he had seen in 20 years of policing.

Police said someone called 911 from the apartment saying Katelynn had choked on food. However, emergency officials quickly determined the girl had been the victim of a homicide.

Katelynn had been staying with her legal guardian, Donna Irving, while her mother dealt with personal problems.

Irving, 29, is in custody charged with second-degree murder, as is her live-in boyfriend, 46-year-old Warren Johnson.

Katelynn had been living with the couple since May, one month before family court granted Irving custody.

An autopsy has been completed, but police say it could take weeks for the results.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Jim Junkin and files from The Canadian Press