The lawyer for the mother-in-law of the girl from Granby questioned, Thursday, the testimony of the pathologist who concluded that the seven-year-old had died of suffocation because his nose and his mouth were covered with tape adhesive.
Pathologist Caroline Tanguay confirmed that before performing her autopsy, she had been informed that the girl’s torso had been covered with duct tape, at first, then the mouth and nose were blocked, in a second. time.
“This information is the cornerstone of your conclusion. If you do not have this information that there is tape on the nose and on the mouth, you do not come to the same conclusion? “Asked lawyer Me Alexandre Biron.
“Exactly,” replied the DD Tanguay.
The pathologist then qualified her response by saying that she would still have come to the conclusion of suffocation, even if the child’s nose and mouth were not blocked.
“If we do not put adhesive tape on the nose and mouth, but add more to the trunk […], it’ll give me the same autopsy. It’s just not going to be external suffocation, but mechanical suffocation, ”said the doctor.
“Mechanical suffocation is when the trunk is stuck and breathing movements are impossible or too shallow for adequate oxygenation,” said Dr.D Tanguay, later.
The expert did not find any traumatic injuries explaining the death, she explained on Tuesday. She therefore analyzed the circumstances surrounding the death.
The girl’s mother-in-law is charged with second degree murder and forcible confinement. She is believed to have wrapped the victim in duct tape, according to the Crown.
The Crown intends to present its final witness on Thursday afternoon. It will then be the defense’s turn to indicate whether it will call testimony.