Appeal denied for Alberta mother who assaulted toddler, left severe burns untreated

A Calgary mother convicted of assaulting her two-year-old daughter, causing broken bones, and leaving the child with untreated burns has had her appeal dismissed.

The mother, whose identity is protected by a publication ban, was found guilty of aggravated assault and failing to provide the necessaries of life. She was appealing the assault convictions.

The Alberta Court of Appeal heard the girl was taken to a clinic for an unrelated issue in July 2017, when a doctor noticed severe untreated burns on her hands. She was referred to a plastic surgeon, but the mother didn’t take her.

The child wasn’t seen by another doctor until she was admitted to hospital a month later with a broken femur that required surgery and a fractured pelvis bone.

The defence argued the child burned herself two months prior by running her hands under steaming hot water. The mother claimed the girl was born with a brain injury and couldn’t feel pain.

The woman also said the child broke her leg and pelvis after accidentally falling down the stairs.

At trial, Justice David Labrenz accepted expert evidence suggesting the hand injuries were consistent with untreated deep immersion burns and that the broken bone would have required force that doesn’t line up with falling down stairs.

He ruled that the mother was lying deliberately and made an effort to cover up the injuries, including the creation of a false narrative that her daughter couldn’t feel pain. Hospital staff confirmed the child cried when she moved or was transferred from a stretcher.

The defence appeal was based on the judge’s inference that the woman was concealing her guilt. Her lawyer argued that the judge didn’t consider factors like injuries being caused by another person.

Appeal Court judges ruled there was enough evidence to find the woman guilty.

“We are satisfied (the judge’s) inference that the injuries were intentionally inflicted by the appellant discloses no reviewable error,” the court wrote in a decision released Wednesday.  “The appeal is dismissed.”

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