Tortured grandparents: a case of mistreatment “worthy of Aurore the child martyr”

A nine-year-old boy from Lotbinière was martyred by his grandparents, to such an extent that the investigator and the DPJ worker responsible for his case have never seen anything like this in more than 15 years of career. . The case of the two torturers is one of “extreme mistreatment,” the prosecutor argued in the case on Tuesday.

• Also read: Handcuffed, locked out, beaten: a 9-year-old child martyred by his grandparents in Lotbinière

Benjamin (fictitious name) presented himself alone in July 2022 to SIAM, the Integrated Abuse and Mistreatment Services of the Quebec region.

When investigator Éric Savoie met him that day, the nine-year-old child denied having suffered violence. But the policeman could tell something was wrong when he saw a deep wound on his scalp.

The detective sergeant had to take a deep breath before continuing his story during submissions on the sentence to be imposed on Benjamin’s grandmother on Tuesday.

The 68-year-old woman hopes to avoid prison after pleading guilty to an assault charge last March. (see other text) She also made statements incriminating her husband, also accused, but still presumed innocent since he is awaiting trial.

Handcuffing at night, deprivation of food, beatings: the list of abuses allegedly inflicted by the couple on the child is shocking. (see box)

“Blood-curdling”

“It was blood-curdling, Mr. Judge. […] We all know the story of Aurore the child martyr, but for us at the office, it is now Benjamin the child martyr,” confided the police officer, with a tremor in his voice.

Having been investigating child abuse for four years, we could see in the reddened eyes of police officer Savoie that even the most hardened responder could not emerge from such a case unscathed.

A photo album showing the child’s injuries was filed with Judge Frank D’Amours on Tuesday. Bruises on the face and body, injuries to his wrists caused by handcuffs worn at night, cigarette burns, obvious signs of malnutrition: Benjamin’s injuries are numerous.

“I made him take off his sweater and there was it on his body, his arms, his back, his legs. It’s not complicated, they were everywhere,” remembers Éric Savoie.

86 photos were needed to detail the boy’s injuries.

Then there were Benjamin’s knees. Swollen, deformed, red and, above all, covered in horns because he was forced to spend sometimes up to 10 consecutive hours kneeling on the floor.

“These are injuries that we are not used to seeing.”

“When we talk, it’s worse afterwards”

A letter from a social worker from the DPJ was also submitted on Tuesday. The first observation she makes is that Benjamin is “the most mistreated child of his age” that she has seen in more than 14 years of career.

Yet the boy continued to say that no one had hurt him.

“When we talk, it’s worse afterwards,” he replied, revealing the extent of the abuse he had suffered and the manipulation to which he had been a victim.

This violence, both physical and psychological, obviously left its mark on the child. Benjamin has an explosive character, struggles to trust, has traumatic after-effects and must live with the memories of this abuse which constantly haunt him.

“He feels responsible for the abuse he suffered,” his foster mother sadly testified in court. “He said, ‘I should have been a better boy,'” the woman said, struggling to hold back tears while the grandmother was impassive as she listened to the horror to which she had contributed.

The abuse allegedly suffered by the nine-year-old child

• Head hits with a cane
• Belt or ruler blows
• Cigarette burns
• Reportedly forced to relieve himself in a diaper
• Would have been stuck outside during thunderstorms
• Handcuffed to a chair at night
• Repeated punishments kneeling on the floor for long hours
• Food deprivation

The majority of the alleged actions were allegedly carried out by the grandfather.

The grandmother admitted to hitting the child in the face several times “during two or three events.”

The grandmother wants to avoid prison

As the grandfather would be responsible for the majority of the violent acts, the defense requests a community sentence for the woman.

The grandmother of the martyred boy from Lotbinière is demanding to serve her sentence in the community “since she is not responsible for the actions caused by her husband,” her lawyer argued on Tuesday.

The woman and her husband regularly looked after their grandson Benjamin (fictitious name) and allegedly abused him in such a disturbing way that the investigator in the file compares the boy’s case to that of “Aurore the child martyr”.

“I’m not trying to tell you that it’s not shocking and that it’s not heartbreaking,” M repeated^e Sophie Racine-Berthiaume, adding however that it was necessary to “put the gestures in their context”.

“It must be remembered that the gestures really blamed on the lady are slaps, two or three times where she describes having lost control of her emotions,” maintains the defense lawyer, who believes that the lady was in a state of “disease.” great vulnerability.

She therefore suggests imposing a sentence of two years less a day in the community, accompanied by three years of supervised probation and hours of community service.

“Extreme mistreatment”

The Crown prosecutor, however, did not see things the same way during submissions on the sentence on Tuesday, describing the case as “extreme mistreatment”.

M^e Louis Durand-Bluteau agrees that the agreed summary of the facts gives limited responsibility to the lady for the violent actions, but responds that her ignorance of the abuse allegedly imposed by her husband militates in favor of a prison sentence.

“Every day she failed to act, she abandoned Benjamin to his fate. “Benjamin the child martyr, who will bear lifelong consequences from the mistreatment of these grandparents, from this double betrayal,” recalled the prosecutor, emphasizing the negative pre-sentence report attached to the file.

“The terms chosen to describe it allow us to argue that it trivializes and minimizes the situation,” lamented the prosecutor.

The latter therefore suggests a sentence of 2 years less a day in prison for the grandmother guilty of assault, also accompanied by three years’ probation.

Judge Frank D’Amours will deliver his decision in February.

Grandfather at the end of his life?

As for the grandfather, it is not impossible that he will never suffer the consequences of the vile acts alleged against him. According to his wife’s lawyer, if the woman had testified on Tuesday, she would have come to say that her husband was very ill.

“Her partner is at the end of his life, he is waiting for medical assistance in dying. Madame takes care of her care at home,” explained M.^e Racine-Berthiaume.

However, no concrete proof of this situation was provided to the public prosecutor. M^e Durand-Bluteau emphasized, as he left the room, that the file was still on the roll next January and that a trial date had to be set until further notice.