Manitoba judge tosses confession of woman accused of manslaughter in toddler's death

A Manitoba judge has thrown out the confession of a woman with a cognitive disability who is charged with manslaughter in the 2020 death of her two-year-old stepson.

In a February provincial court ruling, Judge Don Slough ruled the confession from the now 24-year-old woman only came after police put her through hours of "psychological pummelling."

Her statement "was only obtained after [her] emotional breakdown following prolonged and aggressive questioning," the judge wrote.

"Accordingly I have a reasonable doubt as to the voluntariness of the statement and find the April 3, 2020, statement inadmissible."

Slough said statements made by an accused admitting to a serious offence would usually be critically important evidence in the Crown's case, but that "given [the accused's] significant vulnerability and suggestibility combined with the tactics of the police, her statements cannot be accorded the weight normally assigned to a confession."

The prolonged interviewing … resulted in [her] emotional breakdown.- Judge Don Slough

The woman, who cannot be named due to a publication ban, called 911 on March 24, 2020, to report the child had been injured. At the time, she was the partner of the boy's father, court previously heard.

The boy was taken to hospital in critical condition and died two days later. His stepmother was arrested a week later.

At first, the woman told police the child might have been hurt in a fall or hit by one of his siblings.

Under questioning, she confessed to police that she was responsible for the death, but later told court she did not have access to her medication for anxiety and depression, and was experiencing suicidal thoughts during the roughly 11-hour interview.

In March 2023, she was allowed to withdraw her guilty plea, after a judge found she wasn't fully informed about the consequences of that decision. 

'Aggressive' interrogation tactics: ruling

Slough's February ruling said the accused was given only one short bathroom break during the interrogation. She asked to speak to a lawyer shortly after being placed in the room, but was never given the chance, the decision said.

The judge also said the woman was shown a graphic photograph of the child taken during his autopsy, which revealed a serious head injury.

The autopsy photo "can only be described as gruesome and shocking," and showing it to the woman "served no legitimate purpose; rather it was intended as a brutal psychological shock to provoke an emotional response and perhaps a confession," Slough wrote.

The judge also said throughout the interrogation, the detective became "increasingly aggressive" with the woman and engaged in a "lengthy personal attack."

She was also accused repeatedly of lying.

I know I didn't do this. You can ask me a million questions and it's going to be the same.- Accused

During the police interrogation the woman told detectives that she suffered a serious brain injury in 2007 that left her in a coma for more than three weeks, according to the ruling.

A clinical psychologist testified the woman has an IQ of 54, with a very low verbal comprehension level, and that her ability to understand abstract concepts is extremely limited.

The clinical psychologist said the woman has difficulty functioning on a day-to-day basis and she is "more suggestible than the average person."

The expert also stated that research finds that individuals who are highly suggestible or compliant are more likely to falsely confess.

'I did not do this:' accused

Slough said that even without that evidence, he had reasonable doubt about whether the confession was voluntary. 

"The prolonged interviewing, the aggressive questioning, yelling, the demeaning comments by [the detective], the autopsy photographs and the numerous statements by the police that the interviewing would stop only when [she] provided a satisfactory explanation for the injuries … resulted in [her] emotional breakdown," the judge wrote.

During her interrogation, the woman broke down crying several times and told the detective she was having a hard time, according to a transcript included in the judge's ruling.

"I don't know what happened to [him]. I really don't," she said, weeping, to a detective, according to the ruling. "I know I didn't do this. You can ask me a million questions and it's going to be the same, I did not do this."

Shortly after that, detectives left the room, the ruling says. While alone, the woman could be seen with her head on her lap, rocking back and forth, tapping her head on the wall and saying, "I can't take it anymore. I know I didn't do it."

[Admitting her statements] would bring the administration of justice into disrepute.​​​- Judge Don Slough

She eventually asked how long she would be held in custody.

"As long as it takes, to be honest," an investigator told her. "We really don't have a time frame.… It's about getting to the truth and the complete story."

Eventually, a second investigator took over the interrogation and suggested to the accused that she shook the child to death.

She denied doing so, but said she was overwhelmed taking care of four kids. She eventually told the detective she dropped the child, later saying she threw him.

The interview was then stopped.

The judge's ruling said the woman only confessed after the detective provided specific information about the probable causes of the child's injuries, and when her confession did not match the medical evidence, the detective shaped it to match.

Admitting her statements "would bring the administration of justice into disrepute," the decision said.

The woman's trial is set to resume on April 8.