(Trois-Rivières) The mother-in-law of the girl from Granby added duct tape to the little victim on the morning of April 29, 2019. “I know it’s an extreme decision, but at that point, I never, ever thought it was dangerous. I never thought she was going to die, ”she said in testimony interspersed with sobs on Monday.
From the start of the day, his lawyer, Mr.e Alexandre Biron, announced that his client was “not aware of the danger of death”. She is charged with second degree murder and forcible confinement against the 7 year old child.
“Although regrettable actions have been taken,” she did not commit a murder, he argued in his opening statement.
The accused took a moment to address the 14 jurors while greeting them when a first question was asked. “It’s up to me to explain my story to you. I couldn’t wait, ”she said, her voice stressed. She was surrounded by two correctional officers. Members of her family also came for the first time to the Trois-Rivières courthouse to see and hear her.
The 38-year-old claimed the child was wrapped in duct tape the night of April 28-29, 2019, after she fled the house. She said it was not her who initiated the restraint, but held the child’s legs for a short time. The victim was dressed in an adult shirt with the sleeves tied at the back when she was tied up.
Around 8 a.m., the mother-in-law was woken up by a noise coming from the little girl’s room. The child was standing by her window and she was starting to stick her little fingers out of the shirt collar, the woman said.
“I just took the tape and I rolled around my chest, ”then recounted the defendant, in tears. “And I squeezed at his chest. ”
“I can not say the number of laps, maybe ten laps,” she continued.
The mother-in-law explained that she believed the girl was “safe” while awaiting her appointment with the child psychiatrist, scheduled for 3 pm in the afternoon. She didn’t want the child to hurt herself when she came out the window or to drop a piece of furniture on her. These were arranged so as to block the bedroom windows. The woman hoped that the little one would be hospitalized the same day to treat her behavioral problems.
Despite the duct tape around her, the girl continued to bounce around. Then she fell, said the accused. The latter then laid the child on the ground.
“I laid her down on the floor. In the other direction, I put two turns [de ruban adhésif] to keep her from moving, ”she said sobbing. “I spent the tape on his hair and I directed him to the feet. And I went back up. ”
“I didn’t block the airways. I know it, ”she added firmly. The child was screaming for her release, she argued.
Later that morning, the mother-in-law felt the child had calmed down. She walked to the girl’s room to offer her breakfast.
“This is where we saw the face of [la victime]. Their eyes. She was inert, ”she dropped. Members of his family burst into tears; some jurors were unable to hold back their tears. The accused also needed a few minutes to recover. “Let us know when you’re ready.” There is no urgency, ”Judge Louis Dionne told the accused.
The woman said the victim had more duct tape than when she left the room the last time. ” The tape, here it was stuck. There were too many. We weren’t able to tear, ”she said, pointing at the lower part of her neck.
The 911 call was made within minutes of the girl’s discovery, according to the accused. The victim died in hospital the next day.
“She was mutilating herself”
Earlier in the day, the woman recounted her first encounters with the girl, in 2014. “She is small, she is cute, she still has a lot of energy… She is jovial. She is beautiful, ”she said.
However, she indicated that the girl had been followed by the Directorate of Youth Protection (DPJ) since her birth. The child had numerous appointments with doctors for behavioral problems, according to the accused.
The victim was angry, she urinated on the floor, on her doggies and on her clothes. She scratched her nose and put blood “all over the walls.” She also had eating and sleeping disorders, the 38-year-old listed.
She was having fits. She mutilated herself, she scratched herself, she screamed for hours, for three hours, for four hours.
The accused
The Crown will question the victim’s mother-in-law on Tuesday. Publication bans prevent us from naming certain names and revealing certain details of testimony.