Woman pleads guilty to manslaughter in child death case EPS criticized Crown over
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In a case that led police to publicly challenge Crown prosecutors, an Edmonton woman originally charged with murder pleaded guilty Wednesday to a lesser charge in the killing of an eight-year-old girl.
The 29-year-old, who can’t be named due to a publication ban, was charged with first-degree murder but pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of manslaughter in Court of King’s Bench.
It comes a day after Edmonton’s interim police chief made public a letter from his force to Alberta’s Justice Ministry saying it was aware of the plea deal and urging the Crown to call it off.
The Edmonton Police Service said on Tuesday that, for the first time in its history, it had sent a letter to Alberta Justice requesting a review of a decision by the Alberta Crown Prosecution Service to accept a manslaughter plea “for the horrific murder of a child.”
Police said they’ve become “frequently aghast” with prosecutorial decisions.
“What we expect from the Crown — what you and the public should expect — is that the Crown is a zealous advocate for justice,” the EPS letter said.
“Unfortunately, so far, we have not seen that in this case.”
The EPS threatened that if the Crown did not change course, police would release their own details of the case so it could be judged in the court of public opinion.
The letter was sent Monday by EPS legal and regulatory services director Megan Hankewich to Kim Goddard, the provincial assistant deputy justice minister.
The letter was also signed by interim chief Warren Driechel, one of two deputy chiefs currently leading the EPS, and cc’d to Justice Minister Mickey Amery.
Police said the file related “to the extreme child abuse and ultimate homicide” of an Edmonton girl. The eight-year-old went missing in April 2023 before being found dead a few days later.
The letter challenges the traditional firewall that separates police, who investigate a case, from prosecutors, who determine how best to proceed with the case in court.
Police said a significantly reduced sentence that would typically accompany a manslaughter conviction would fail to see justice done in the killing.
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“While we maintain hope that this case will see a trial, we will not publicly publish details of the evidence collected, so as to avoid the risk of tainting the prospective jury pool.
“However, if the matter concludes as currently planned, there is no jury pool to taint.
“Therefore, we will share significant information from our investigation with the public so that they can properly assess whether this prosecution and plea agreement were concluded appropriately and advocate in a public forum for a stronger prosecution service.”
The Edmonton Police Service is addressing the manslaughter plea on Wednesday afternoon. This story will be updated after that.
What happened two years ago?
On April 24, 2023, police stopped by a home near 87 Avenue and 165 Street in west Edmonton to check in on the well-being of the child.
When she was nowhere to be found, officers began investigating. There were “suspicious circumstances,” and EPS said the homicide section took over the case.
Her body was found a few days later on Samson Cree Nation in Maskwacis, which is located about a one-hour drive south of Edmonton.
An autopsy found the girl died of blunt impact trauma, and the death was confirmed to be a homicide.
Global News can’t identify the child or family due to a publication ban to protect both the victim and other children related to her.
Global News spoke with a woman who called 911 after hearing a rumour that a child may have been seriously injured or was dead.
She said her nephew told her he showed up at the apartment where the child was allegedly injured and saw an unconscious girl with a head wound in a bedroom and a dent on the wall.
Even before the girl was found, police believed she may have been killed. A 27-year-old woman was arrested and charged with first-degree murder and indignity to a dead body.
Four other people were also charged with accessory to murder and indignity to a dead body.
The woman’s name and that of one of the other accused were withheld by police to protect the identity of other children related to the dead girl.
Rare move by Edmonton police
Shawn King, president of the Criminal Trial Lawyers’ Association, called the letter essentially an “extortion tactic,” as it promises to release previously unpublished details of the case.
“This is extremely inappropriate,” the defence lawyer said Tuesday. “They’re in charge of doing these criminal investigations and handing the evidence over to the Crown prosecutor to deal with it unbiasedly.
“And now the police are directly interfering with the Crown’s authority to proceed as they see fit, like they’re quasi-ministers of justice.”
NorQuest College justice studies chair and criminologist Dan Jones spent 25 years as a member of the Edmonton Police Service and said he’s never seen police issue such a forcefully worded letter.
“I think that’s a very bold move, and I think they are obviously feeling so strongly about this case.”
Jones noted the details of the homicide are horrible and speculated there was perhaps fear within the police service that accepting a lesser plea deal would set a precedent in the courts going forward.
“As these move on and different ones happen, they just reference as case law and all of the sudden you’re seeing people that murder children get lesser sentences? I think that’s a valid concern.”
“I’ve never seen this before, but maybe there needs to be some pushback from system to system to try to create some change so people feel safe.”
Breena Smith, president of the Alberta Crown Attorneys’ Association, declined to comment because the case and the focus of the letter are before the courts. The Alberta Crown Prosecution Service also didn’t comment on the situation on Tuesday.
In total, five people were charged in relation to the girl’s death.
Two men pleaded guilty this summer to causing an indignity to a body and were sentenced to nearly three years. They were given credit for time served and released.
Two others are charged with being an accessory to murder and causing an indignity to a body.
Police said at least three of the accused knew the victim.
— with files from Lisa Johnson, The Canadian Press
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