*Editor’s note: this story contains disturbing subject matter
Six years in prison for a Yarmouth woman who killed her toddler.
Thirty-two-year-old April Surette was sentenced Thursday afternoon on a charge of manslaughter in the death of her 17-month-old son, Isaiha.
Judge Mark Scott accepted a joint recommendation from the Crown and defence.
He said the law is clear, that joint recommendations must not be rejected unless contrary to public interest.
Surette pleaded guilty to the charge in December, shortly before a trial was scheduled to begin.
The incident:
An agreed statement of facts from the Crown and defense say that in 2020, Surette, then 27, was struggling to establish a relationship with her son Isaiha.
He and Surette’s five other children had been in foster care from September to November of that year, they were returned to her care in early December.
On December 17, 2020, Surette was feeling overwhelmed as Isaiha was inconsolable.
In a moment of frustration while changing the boy’s diaper, she intentionally threw the child from a bed onto a hardwood floor.
The incident was witnessed by Surette’s seven-year-old son.
Isaiha’s father was not home at the time, when he arrived, he called 911.
The boy was taken to Yarmouth Regional Hospital, and then airlifted to the IWK where he died on December 20.
His cause of death was ‘blunt head trauma,’ according to the Nova Scotia Medical Examiner, who noted swelling in the brain and hemorrhaging in several locations.
‘One act of violence was all it took.’
In his sentencing, Judge Scott, with his voice breaking, said it’s hard to imagine a greater societal loss than a young child by a parent they depended on.
He said despite Surette having no previous criminal history, one act of violence was all that it took to kill Isaiha.
Judge Scott told Surette that he doesn’t want her to feel like she’s an evil person, but the sentence must punish the conduct, as a young, vulnerable child has been taken, and it’s shaken the community.
He noted the guilty plea is important, as it spared her son from testifying against her as a witness, and that she’s taken full responsibility for her actions.
The Judge also hopes Surette will get rehabilitation while in prison, and can one day move forward.
Crown lawyer Mark Kennedy said a defenseless and vulnerable toddler lost his life, and the sentence must clearly communicate that violence against children will be met with a significant custodial sentence.
Defence lawyer Tim Peacock told the court it was one of the most difficult cases he’s been involved with.
He said there are no gains or winners, just tragedy and sadness.
An emotional Surette declined to speak in court before the sentencing.
She has also been banned from owning firearms for 10 years, and must submit DNA.
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