An Alberta expert said she was surprised that a Winnipeg mother was charged with manslaughter in the death of her newborn baby when it was more of a case of infanticide, she said.
Kirsten Kramar, a professor of sociology at the University of Calgary, said the charges against the woman underscore how prosecutors in Canada have approached the issue of infanticide.
Woman Jeanene Rosa Moar was charged this week with manslaughter after Winnipeg police discovered her baby’s body in a dumpster in May.
He was arrested Wednesday.
Winnipeg police said the decision to file a murder charge against Jeanene Rosa Moar was made in consultation with Crown prosecutors.
quite a difference
The case he faces has a heavier sentence than the infanticide case.
Ms. indicates. Kramar that in Canada, infanticide makes it possible to deal with this type of situation.
According to the Criminal Code, it is a willful act or omission on the part of a mother that causes the death of her newborn child if, at that time, she has not yet fully recovered from the effects of childbirth […] or breastfeeding.
Conviction for manslaughter could result in a life sentence while the maximum sentence for infanticide is five years, Ms Kramar said.
We need to think about alternatives to prosecution and incarceration, especially for women like this.reasoning of the expert who wrote the book Unwanted Mothers, Unwanted Babies: Infanticide in Canada [Mères involontaires, bébés non désirés : L’infanticide au Canada].
They think that if they use a stricter punishment framework, they can prevent other women from committing these types of crimes.
The infanticide charge was created in 1948, and at that time the death penalty was the mandatory sentence for anyone convicted of first degree murder.
The Alberta expert based his demonstration on the case of Meredith Borowiec, a Calagary woman charged with second-degree murder for dumping her babies three times between 2008 and 2010 in a dumpster located in front of her residence .
He was later convicted of two counts of infanticide. In 2016, the Supreme Court upheld the ruling that marked the first time it had reviewed infanticide law.
In the case of Meredith Borowiec, Crown prosecutors found that the wording of Canada’s infanticide law was vague, old-fashioned and left too much room for new mothers to kill their babies regardless of their moral. sin.
Associate Professor in the University’s Criminal Justice Program mount-royal in Calgary Scharie Tavcer says a belief in murder will require proof some kind of criminal intent, criminal thinking […] as opposed to infanticide, in which the mother is ill.
Root causes
The academic director of the Center for Research and Education on Violence Against Women and Children at the University of Western Ontario, Katreena Scott, said mothers who have been guilty of killing their newborn babies rarely have support during their pregnancy.
These cases are also linked to domestic violence or mental illness, he says.
The history of the 31-year-old Winnipeg woman shows that she struggled with addictions, homelessness and infant alcoholism. He also suffered violence and all forms of harassment at the age of 18 from his mother’s girlfriend.
We don’t seem to care that a baby is killed […] But we are also interested in the various problems that arise for mothers who end up in an unwanted pregnancy.mention of Kirsten Kramar.
She added that Canada’s infanticide law takes into account the social conditions surrounding women who find themselves there are unwanted babies and no choices.
Kirsten Kramar said cases like the one that occurred in Winnipeg show progress still needs to be made in addressing the causes of infanticide.
When our weakest and most vulnerable members of society end up committing these types of offenses, it says more about society than the people themselves.
With information from Caitlyn Gowriluk
Radio CanadaGerald Fillion
Source: Radio-Canada
