New trial ordered for Toronto couple convicted of murdering four-year-old son after judge's comments led to 'miscarriage of justice:' Ontario's top courtWarning: This story contains graphic details that may be disturbing to some readers.
The court documents indicated that the four-year-old had suffered from “moderate to chronic malnutrition” and weighed just 27.6 pounds at the time of his death. “The appearance of fairness and the integrity of the trial was irretrievably compromised by the trial judge’s in-chambers unsolicited opinions about the evidence, by the manner in which he expressed these opinions, and by addressing the appellants directly in open court, all with the mission of having them plead guilty,” the decision read. “Regrettably, there must be a new trial.”
Both in-chambers meetings were initiated by Ducharme. During the first meeting, the trial judge told defence counsel that the two accused were “f****ed” if the case went to trial, encouraging all parties to resolve the case with guilty pleas to second-degree murder. After the meetings, Ducharme followed up in an email to counsel, asking about a possible resolution. At one point, the trial judge addressed the two accused directly in court, telling them that he thought they would be convicted of first-degree murder and urging them to plead guilty to second-degree murder.
Ducharme had indicated that his comments on second-degree murder pleas were out of a sense of “compassion” for the accused, as he could not see a plausible route to manslaughter convictions. Colley had initially pleaded guilty to manslaughter, a plea the Crown did not accept.
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