Father found guilty of manslaughter in 21-month-old daughter's death

author-image
ptcnetcanada
New Update
NULL

A Manitoba father,Daniel Williams   has been convicted of manslaughter after his trial heard how he took no action to keep his 21-month-old daughter safe from her abusive mother.A jury in Winnipeg delivered its guilty verdict last night for 37-year-old Williams in the 2014 death of Kierra Elektra Starr Williams on the Peguis First Nation.

Kierra was seized at birth by child welfare workers but was returned to the family in the summer of 2013.

She died the following summer of blunt force trauma to the abdomen and internal blood loss.Evidence presented by the Crown said the toddler was "starving" and "withering" when she was killed.

Her body showed signs of months of abuse including a dislocated shoulder, broken bones and missing teeth on top of being severely malnourished and covered in bruises.

Advertisment

Her mother, Vanessa Bushie, received a life sentence with no chance of parole for 14 years for second-degree murder last year.

Crown prosecutors said that Williams may not have abused the toddler, but his inaction contributed to her death.

Defence attorney Greg Brodsky argued Williams didn’t intervene earlier because he didn’t know about the injuries and he didn’t want his other children apprehended by Child and Family Services.

Williams will be sentenced at a later date.The jury, comprised of nine men and three women, had to choose one of three possible verdicts: that Williams was not guilty, that he was not guilty of manslaughter but guilty of failure to provide the necessaries of life or that he is guilty of manslaughter.

canada-news manitoba-news latest-canada-news
Advertisment