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Toddler Doe, 3, was beaten to death January 26th, 2007.

The boy was Edmonton's fourth homicide victim of the year.

A 32-year-old woman was charged with second-degree murder, assault causing bodily harm, aggravated assault, duty of persons to provide necessaries [failure to provide the necessities of life] and child abandonment.

Neither the child or the woman can be identified under provisions of Alberta's Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act.

preliminary hearing | latest update

The story of Toddler Doe's death played out over a weekend, with details emerging in fragmented form.

Official statements were slow in coming, and a major newspaper reported his death prematurely.

At about 2:55 a.m. on January 26th, 2007 Emergency Medical Services were called to a west end home after a call had come in reporting a small child was suffering respiratory distress.

Upon arrival, paramedics called police, who then called in their Zebra (Child at Risk Response) Team.

A three-year-old boy showed obvious signs of severe head trauma and was rushed to the Stollery Children's Hospital. His condition was listed as critical.

Police took a 32-year-old woman into custody at the scene.

A warrant was obtained and the home was put under scrutiny by forensic officers.

One neighbour said the detectives were concentrating their efforts in the home’s two bathrooms, one on the main floor and the other on the second floor.

“They went up and down the house, the toys outside, the gym unit she’s got in the backyard.”

Another neighbour said she saw three children taken from the home earlier in the day – a boy around seven years old and a girl about three years old – who belonged to the single mother, while the third, a boy around seven years old, was a foster child.

The woman told the Edmonton Journal, "They had this blank look on their faces."

"Taking care of four children is a lot of responsibility, particularly when you are working. She said she had a nanny, but I never saw a nanny."

"I think she bankrupted her own physical and emotional energy," the neighbour continued. "I don't know what she was trying to prove."

She told the Journal the single mother sometimes gave her an uneasy feeling.

"I can't really put my finger on it, but there were many neighbours who felt like, 'I don't want my kids playing there,' " she said.

"I remember her little girl would be in the backyard screaming and screaming. Most moms would come running out, but in her case, no one came out."

"It got to the point where [the mom] was almost oblivious. I think that's where my apprehension came from."

A male neighbour said it seemed like there were always a lot of people in the house. It was believed the home was owned by a single mother.

"The woman appeared a little nosy," he said. "She'd show up at odd hours with weird questions, wanting to know if we knew what was going on in the neighbourhood."

Early online reports at the Edmonton Journal web site on January 27th reported the boy had died the night before and that homicide detectives were assigned to the case. The newspaper later retracted the story.

It was also reported staff from Alberta Child and Family Services were also called in to investigate.

The Edmonton Sun reported the three-year-old boy was in foster care at the two-storey home near 157th Street and 78th Avenue. Police later confirmed the boy's placement.

The woman, who cannot be identified under the Child, Youth and Family Enhancement Act, was later charged with counts of aggravated assault, failure to provide the necessities of life and child abandonment.

She worked part-time as an instructor in the Faculty of Health and Community Studies at Grant MacEwan College. A MacEwan spokesman said she had been relieved of those duties.

The other children from the home were re-located to "a safe place" according to authorities.

On January 28th the Edmonton Journal reported the three-year-old boy was taken off life-support at 11:20 p.m. the night before and succumbed to his injuries.

The toddler had suffered severe brain damage, said the boy's father.

“When I had my son he was a really chubby kid,” he said at the hospital where he was at his son’s bedside for much of Friday and all of Saturday.

“When I see him now he is just almost skin and bones.”

"He has bruises on his body now. He has some on his knees, he has a couple on each bum cheek."

The father said the boy also had a burn on his hand and another on his nose. He said police told him the boy was made to sleep in the garage at night.

He said doctors removed a piece of the boy’s skull in an attempt to relieve pressure, but that his brain was so swollen it pushed up through the hole.

“The brain damage is too far gone,” the father said. “He has suffered enough in his life. His brain won’t stop swelling so I’m just going to let him go.”

The child was placed in provincial government care on December 6th, 2006, according to the father. He had seen his boy only twice over the six weeks since.

The Sun reported boy's father lived on the street and slept in homeless shelters. There has been no word about the child's natural mother.

It was unclear when the boy was sent to live at the foster home, though a neighbour thought he was there for less than two weeks.

After a bail hearing on January 27th, the 32-year-old woman was remanded into custody until February 5th, 2007.

They next day police charged the woman with second-degree murder and assault causing bodily harm.

Initial autopsy results released on January 30th, 2007 indicated the three-year-old died of cranial trauma.

The case of Toddler Doe then took another unusual twist as a courtroom waited two hours for a defence lawyer to appear.

The accused woman's lawyer, Shannon Prithipaul, said she had given her business card to police detectives assigned to case and was with the 32-year-old since she was taken into custody on January 26th.

Prithipaul was shocked to learn her client was in court on January 30th – something she learned from her husband who heard it on the radio.

The lawyer said her client wasn't notified of the court date, that the toddler had died or that additional charges had been laid.

"It is very important that the accused know what's happening, for example when new charges are laid."

"She was never informed of that – all she heard was what was published in the paper, what was in the radio. So she did not know when aggravated assault all of a sudden became upgraded to murder."

"It has the potential to undermine the solicitor-client relationship. Especially where we're just in the beginning of an investigation, that kind of relationship is critical."

“It's really frustrating that it seems the media knows more about this case than her counsel.”

In court, Prithipaul told a judge that the Crown and police had not provided her with key information.

The 32-year-old woman, wearing a navy blue sweatshirt, leg shackles and handcuffs during her appearance, was remanded in custody until February 5th, 2007. She was reported to have shown no emotion.

While denied bail on the original aggravated assault charge, she could seek bail on the newer murder charge.

Prithipaul said she wouldn't likely continue defending the woman for long, as she feels it would be better for her client to find another lawyer with more experience in murder cases. She said she gave the woman a list of names.

The lawyer told media cameras that her client was very distraught.

"She's coping as well as she can, but she's having a very hard time. Her family is backing her 100 per cent, and she has friends in the community and they're all very concerned about her."

Prithipaul finished her comments with, "I guess I would just ask people not to judge the case too quickly.” She added there was another side to the story that would eventually come out in court.

Responsibilty for the breakdown in communication over the court appearance was not readily accepted by anyone.

"As far as the court date goes, I can't speak to that because the responsibility belongs with police," said Alberta Justice spokesman David Dear.

"Police lay the charge and they bring the person down to the bail hearing when the court date is set."

An Edmonton police spokesman said the Crown has that responsibility.

"Our conduit into the legal system is the Crown, so we give our information to them and they're responsible for distributing it around," said the spokesman.

On January 31st, 2007 CBC Edmonton News reported that the 32-year-old woman had six children in her home in December.

CBC said two were her biological children and four were foster children.

Edmonton and Area Child and Family Services spokeswoman Cheryl Oxford, while not commenting specifically on the case, said exceptions can be made for new foster parents to care for as many as four foster children – especially if it means keeping a sibling group together.

"The policy for foster care children in the home is two for a new foster parent and four for a more experienced foster parent. The only exception that can be made is [for] a sibling group."

New foster parents are normally licensed to care for no more than two foster children. The 32-year-old woman had only been a foster parent for a few months.

Court documents filed by Edmonton police allege the foster mother assaulted the boy causing bodily harm during the period of December 5th, 2006 through January 26th, 2007.

Between Christmas and New Year's Day, the foster mother was asked to take in another three foster children, sources told CBC Edmonton News. They were siblings, including two teenagers and a nine-year-old.

She agreed to take them in for just one night, but they stayed longer.

The sources said it was too much for the woman, who told officials she couldn't handle having so many children in her house. However, they told her there was nowhere else to send the children.

One teenager stayed for a few days and the other teen for a week and a half. The nine-year-old remained in the woman's family until January 26th.

Also on January 31st, 2007 the birth father of Toddler Doe issued a public statement through a lawyer.

In the document the father alleged "my son was abused and subjected to corporal punishment, which in my view are forms of torture."

"My son was subjected to forms of excruciating pain and neglect, until his passing."

The statement, which can be read here in full, was supplied to media by the Edmonton law firm Engel Brubaker.

Erika Norheim, a lawyer with Engel Brubaker, confirmed that the Hobbema man is a client of the firm and said the unsigned letter was genuine.

“He gave it to me and instructed me to distribute it,” she said.

The father put out the statement hoping that media outlets would stop trying to contact him, she said.

"He didn't want to be silent, but he's hurting tremendously and he doesn't want to be talking about it right now," said Norheim.

Norheim said it was possible the father could take legal action in relation to his son’s death, but it was too early to say what he would do.

On February 1st, 2007 the Edmonton Journal published several articles based on court documents the newspaper obtained.

The Edmonton Journal - February 1st, 2007

The foster mother told police Toddler Doe's fatal head injuries were the result of him throwing himself onto a bathroom floor.

The unproven allegations were included in a search warrant application filed January 26th, 2007 by Detective Paul Czerwonka of the police Child Protection Section.

The documents claim the foster mother provided statements to an emergency pediatrician and a police officer that were inconsistent.

The 32-year-old woman told investigators Doe woke up around 2:00 a.m. on the 26th screaming and saying he had to go to the bathroom. The boy seemed agitated and the woman went to the bathroom with him.

According to the foster mother's statement, the boy began to "punch himself in the head."

"He began thrashing, hitting, punching, kicking at me to get free to flail," the foster mother wrote in a statement hours after the incident. "He broke free and threw himself on the floor headfirst."

At that point, "he stopped moving, his eyes opened and began taking irregular gasps of air."

The accused woman, a registered nurse, shouted to a live-in nanny for help and called 911.

Waiting for paramedics, the two women tried to stimulate Doe's breathing by clapping and calling his name.

When Doe arrived the Stollery Children's Hospital, he was in critical condition and doctors gave him no chance of survival.

"The brain swelling was so dramatic that a hole was not able to be drilled to relieve the pressure but the top half of the skull was cut off. The only sign of life is when [he] takes a breath, which is a basic function of the brain," according to statements contained in the documents.

Doctors said Doe's injuries were inconsistent with the foster mother's version of events, and that he had "multiple bruises reflective of multiple blunt trauma."

The live-in nanny, a 23-year-old woman, came to the west-end home January 15th. It was also learned the accused woman became a foster mother in September 2006.

The foster mother told police Doe had a history of throwing himself against walls and floors, of falling downstairs and of "self-mutilation" of his hands and lips.

She said school staff had commented on the his anger towards other children, his "boundary issues," and "emotional meltdowns."

According to the court documents, the woman also reported the boy had previously said, "Daddy not good," and "Daddy hit me," and "Daddy don't like me, Daddy bad."

Toddler Doe was turned over to Children's Services in December 2006 by the father's common-law wife. He was placed in the west-end foster home on December 6th and his biological father had a supervised visit with him on January 19th.

He next saw Doe in hospital when the child was placed on life support.

In a companion story, the Journal quoted a source who knew the 32-year-old woman.

"We've been friends for a long, long time. I've known her for many years."

"This is a complicated situation. People should withhold judgment until they know all the facts. There are two sides to every story."

The source suggested the accused foster mother may have been given more responsibility than she could handle.

Also on February 1st, Global Edmonton spoke to the three-year-old's biological mother, Melodie.

The woman, recently in a detox program trying to straighten out her life, was in Edmonton staying with a friend.

Melodie didn't know her son had been placed in foster care and had been earlier told he was living with his father.

She also said she wasn't notified of her son's death until two days after he was taken off life support.

Melodie hadn't seen her son in a long time.

"Why my baby? Why did this have to happen to my baby?"

"There's so many things I want to say to him. All I can say to him is, Mommy will love you and miss you."

Melodie shared her criticism of the foster care system that was supposed to look after her child.

"Rage, outraged. They weren't checking on my son. If they were then he wouldn't be in this situation."

The boy's grandfather, Arnold, said he tried to see Toddler in the hospital but was turned away by security.

"I got a heartache ... missing him ... I can't sleep at nights."

The air was filled with the sound of drums and traditional song as mourners carried the tiny coffin of Toddler Doe.

A service at Sacred Heart Church, 10821 96 Street, was attended by dozens on the morning of February 2nd, 2007.

Arnold, Doe's grandfather, again shared his feelings and frustrations with Global cameras.

"I couldn't explain how to say the grief I have passed. It is so hard for me."

"Why was he there? That's the question I ask."

"Both sides failed him. Now that he's gone I would like to get the provincial government to step up on their feet to look into this matter that I'm so hurt about."

On February 5th, 2007 the 32-year-old woman made a brief appearance in court.

Representing the woman was high-profile criminal lawyer Robbie Davidson.

Robinson asked the court for the matter to be put over as he was still waiting for disclosure information from the Crown and police.

The lawyer suggested that details of the autopsy may be some time in coming in what he termed "a complex case."

On February 23rd, 2007 the Edmonton foster mother accused of killing a three-year-old boy in her care was released on bail.

After hearing arguments, Court of Queen's Bench Justice June Ross ruled that the 32-year-old woman has to post a $10,000 cash bond and is forbidden from having any unsupervised contact with children, including her own two biological children.

The 32-year-old woman is not allowed to be left with children under the age of 12 unless another adult is in the room.

"She is not to care for children in any way," said Ross.

She must live with her mother and work with her father while she awaits trial. She is also not allowed to have contact with the nanny who was in her employ when the boy died.

The woman also can not ask for, apply for or obtain travel documents and must stay in Alberta.

Justice Ross also issued a publication ban on what was said in court.

The woman, wearing a pony-tail and a blue sweater, was emotional throughout the hearing, frequently crying. She looked often to the more than a dozen relatives and friends who had come to support her.

After the decision, her relatives and supporters hugged each other, some crying tears of relief.

She has been “shattered by the experience,” her lawyer, Brian Beresh, told reporters outside court after the hearing. He said the woman was elated to be granted bail.

"This is just the classic case where you would never expect, given her history, that she would ever be in jail. This is just unbelievable – she has been shattered by this experience."

“There was an unbelievable rush to judgment when my client was charged.”

"I think that this could have been one of the worst miscarriages of justice left unexamined. I tell you we're going to examine this thoroughly because man people are going to be surprised at the evidence that's revealed."

"We were very disappointed that people did not view this objectively, collect information objectively. From my review of what I have seen so far there appears to be certain individuals or agencies, which appear to be protecting their own conduct."

"I honestly believe that there will be sufficient second questioning or guessing as to what actually occured."

Beresh said his client's case was complicated and the veteran lawyer also stated he was concerned with how details of the investigation were released in a "distorted fashion" to the public.

No explanation was offered why the case was no longer being handled by Robbie Davidson.

It was also learned the medical examiner has not yet completed the autopsy. The woman was slated to be back in court on March 5th, 2007.

The 32-year-old woman was in court March 19th and was set to appear again on March 26th, however no details were available regarding the nature of those appearances.

On November 19th, 2007 a preliminary hearing for an Edmonton foster mother charged with second-degree murder in the death of a three-year-old boy got underway.

A publication ban on reporting details of hearing was imposed under the Child and Youth Family Enhancement Act. The hearing was scheduled to last five days.

On January 17th, 2008 a judge ordered the foster mother to be tried on a charge of second-degree murder after he ruled there was enough evidence to commit the woman to trial.

The 33-year-old woman will also face charges of assault causing bodily harm, child abandonment and failing to provide the necessities of life.

The decision to take the case to trial followed a preliminary hearing that first began November 19th, 2007. A publication ban prevented the reporting of hearing details.

The single mother of two, who remained free on bail, was slated to learn of her trial date on February 29th, 2008 in Court of Queen’s Bench.

A seven-member panel, appointed by Alberta Minister of Children's Services Janis Tarchuk in February 2007 to review the case, was still at least a year away from completing their report.

Janis Tarchuk, Alberta’s Children’s Services minister, ordered a special case review into the three-year-old's death.

“This is absolutely a tragedy. It’s a very sad day for Albertans,” Tarchuk said. “My heart goes out to the family and friends of this young boy.”

“Albertans need to know that I take this very seriously. Today we have a lot of questions and calling a review is about getting answers.”

Tarchuk said she was checking on how much information from the review will eventually be allowed to be made public.

Edmonton and Area Child and Family Services spokesperson Cheryl Oxford would not comment, citing privacy rules, on how or when the child came to be in foster care.

The agency responsible for the foster care system in the city will also conduct its own internal review, Oxford said.

Tarchuk did not say how long the reviews would take to complete.

Provincial fatality inquiries are mandatory whenever a child dies in government care.

CTV Edmonton spoke to a woman named "Linda" who cared for the toddler in her home in 2006. She said the boy had a family that loved him but was unable to care for him.

"It's devastating. I have to say it's like something out of a horror show. It's unimaginable that this could happen in this society here in Edmonton."

Linda remembered the boy as happy and healthy.

"He was a wonderful, quiet, happy-go-lucky little boy. A solid little boy. I know I tried to pick him up many times – he was heavy for his age."

The woman expressed her feelings for the boy and outrage with a process that should have protected him.

"I'm heartbroken – heartbroken that this innocent child, who had no one to call out to, no one to help him – the system failed."

"We can not sit back as a society and let this happen – over and over again."

"That system was there to protect that child. What happened? What failed? We need to know."

The child's death was Edmonton's fourth murder of 2007.

In 2005, Edmonton recorded the death of another foster child. Caleb Merchant was 13 months old when he was shook to death by Raymond Douglas Loyer.

Loyer, originally charged with second-degree murder, pleaded guilty to a reduced charge of manslaughter.

Court agreed to a joint-recommendation of five years in prison, but Loyer was given six months credit for time spent in pre-trial custody. The sentence left him with four-and-a-half years to serve in prison.

On January 31st, 2007 the birth father of Toddler Doe issued a public statement through a lawyer.

The statement was supplied to media by the Edmonton law firm Engel Brubaker.

Regarding the impact of the untimely passing of my son. The Child and Family Services Authority system failed to provide a safe, secure, nurturing and loving environment.

This system failed to protect my son.

Unfortunately my son was abused and subjected to corporal punishment, which in my view are forms of torture. My son was subjected to forms of excruciating pain and neglect, until his passing.

I am unable to comprehend how any individual could inflict theses types of injuries on my child.

On Saturday, January 27, 2007, I held my son's battered, starved, beaten, broken body as he suffered, until he took his last breath of life.

My pain and suffering can not be put into words. For there are no words to truly describe what I have seen and how this tragedy has impacted me and my family.

This horrid tragedy is incomprehensible, for the Child and Family Services Authority are to protect our children. And they failed the most precious Gift the Creator gave me, my son and his life.

In these, the saddest days of my life, I hear many people speaking about the ways the system failed my son. People say there wasn't enough money to ensure there were Native foster homes to care for our children. There wasn't enough money to ensure there were social workers visiting foster homes often enough. From my point of view however, the one thing most lacking was a lack of trust. I believe there wasn't enough trust in First Nations people to determine what is best for our own children.

In this, you can trust. We promise that we love our children. We promise that we want our children to thrive and prosper. We promise that we want our children to change the world, so that it will be a better place for all people to live in. My son's short life will help to fulfill that third promise, if we learn from the mistakes that have been made. If we learn from our mistakes, his death will have meaning.

There needs to be trust, that as a community, First Nations people have the best interests of their children in mind. Because First Nations people better understand the circumstances of their people.

There needs to be a real commitment to trusting and supporting First Nations people in finding ways to provide our own children with safe homes when their parents can not provide them. If this isn't in or part of our current system, it should be. For our people have survived for thousands and thousands of years, effectively solving problems. This is one we can solve if entrusted to do so.

It is we, his family who are left to grieve the death of my son. We do so knowing our wishes were not always respected, in regards to decisions that affected his life. We are left picking up the pieces without having a significant impact into the matters that affected his life and caused his loss of life. If his SACRIFICE is to have meaning there needs to be change.

I provide this statement so you will have an understanding. And I request that all media related individuals leave all my family members alone. For this horrid tragedy has affected us to the core of our being. And we ask that out of respect and understanding, you would allow us to grieve in private.

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deadmonton 2007 - toddler doe