CANADA • Sean Ronald FEWER, 10 months old ~ Calgary AB

Accused child killer to face judge alone

Sean Fewer.................accused killer mom Stacey Bordeaux

Mother charged in infant's death opts for trial by judge
February 17, 2011

A mother charged with second-degree murder in the 2004 death of her 10-month-old son and attempted murder of her five-year-old son last year will be tried by Court of Queen's Bench judge sitting alone.

Rupert Joshi, lawyer for Stacey Bourdeaux, made the election on Thursday in provincial court when his client appeared briefly by closed-circuit television.

Joshi and Crown prosecutor Janice Rea then adjourned the case to March 3 for a pre-preliminary meeting, when the two sets of charges are expected to be booked for separate preliminary hearings later this year.

Although the mental status of Bourdeaux, 34, could still become an issue at trial, she has been found fit to stand trial. However, that only means she understands the charges and can instruct counsel.

A psychiatrist also previously found the mother was not suffering from a disturbance of the mind, related to possible postpartum depression, at the time of the homicide of 10-month-old Sean Ronald Fewer in 2004.

Fewer was first thought to have died of natural causes, but when Bourdeaux's other son required a hospital visit last May police decided to revisit the investigation.

The mother faces attempted murder, choking with intent and failing to provide the necessities of life, which were laid after her son was taken to Alberta Children's Hospital while experiencing difficulty breathing and unable to stand.

The name of the second son has not been released to protect the child's identity.

Meanwhile, the infant died in hospital in 2004 after emergency responders found him not breathing in his crib. Bourdeaux was arrested in August and charged with murder.

Fewer's body was never exhumed as part of the investigation. Instead, police said the charge was laid because additional information came to light.

The children's father died earlier last year after he was electrocuted by an overhead power line.

Read more: http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Mother+charged+infant+death+opts+trial+judge/4303337/story.html#ixzz1EGiVnX00

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Related story and video:

Mom charged in 2004 child homicide

Accused child killer expected to plead guilty
July 12, 2011

A Calgary mother charged with murdering her son seven years ago will plead guilty to 'undisclosed' charges next week.

Stacey Joy Bourdeaux faces a second-degree murder charge in the death of her ten- month-old in 2004, as well as attempted murder charges relating to her five-year-old son last year.

The Calgary Herald reports the 34-year-old woman's lawyer has told court the case will be resolved next Thursday, when pleas will be entered and an agreed statement of facts is read into court.

Bourdeaux will likely be sentenced on the charges she'll plead guilty to, in the fall.

http://www.660news.com/news/local/article/252993--accused-child-killer-expected-to-plead-guilty

Sean Fewer.................accused killer mom Stacey Bordeaux

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July 21, 2011 - Stacey Joy Bourdeaux will plead guilty on Aug. 3 to a reduced charge of manslaughter in the death of her 10-month-old son more than seven years ago, as well as attempted murder and failing to provide the necessities of life to another son last year, court heard on Thursday.

Crown prosecutor Janice Rea told provincial court Judge Terry Semenuk that she will be proceeding on a new set of charges, just prepared this week for an anticipated resolution, that includes the manslaughter charge.

The guilty pleas were expected on Thursday, but she and defence lawyer Katherin Beyak have not ironed out some minor differences in the agreed statement of facts.

Bourdeaux appeared in court in person for the brief hearing. She has been in custody since her arrest last August on the murder charge.

Psychiatric and psychological reports are expected to be ordered for use at the sentencing arguments by her and Crown prosecutor Janice Rea after the facts have been read into the record and accepted by the defence.

Sentencing arguments will likely be heard in the fall.

Bourdeaux, 34, elected in February to have separate trials by judge alone at Court of Queen’s Bench. A murder charge must be heard by the higher court, but manslaughter can be heard at the provincial level.

She had been scheduled to begin a weeklong preliminary hearing this week on the attempted murder charge and a second preliminary hearing was to start Aug. 22 on the murder charge.

Both hearings were cancelled last week after Beyak advised the court of the impending resolution.

She is accused of causing the death of 10-month-old Sean Ronald Fewer in 2004. Sean died in hospital after emergency responders found him not breathing in his crib.

He was first thought to have died of natural causes, but when Bourdeaux’s other son required a hospital visit last May, police decided to revisit the investigation and found evidence regarding the 2004 homicide.

The mother was charged in relation to the second son, who cannot be named to protect his identity, after he was taken to Alberta Children’s Hospital while experiencing difficulty breathing and being unable to stand.

http://www.calgaryherald.com/news/Calgary+mother+plead+guilty+manslaughter+child+death/5138798/story.html

Mother admits killing son, and attempting to kill another
August 03, 2011


Stacey Joy Bourdeaux, 33, has pleaded guilty to manslaughter in the Dec. 27, 2004, death of 10-month-old Sean Ronald Fewer, as well as attempted murder and failing to provide the necessities of life to her five-year-old son in late May 2010.

CALGARY — A Calgary mother has admitted she smothered her infant son in his bed nearly seven years ago and tried to do the same last year to another five-year-old son, with whom she was pregnant at the time of the slaying.

Stacey Joy Bourdeaux, 34, pleaded guilty before provincial court judge Terry Semenuk on Wednesday to manslaughter in the Dec. 27, 2004, death of 10-month-old Sean Ronald Fewer, as well as attempted murder and failing to provide the necessities of life to her five-year-old son in late May 2010.

The second son suffered irreparable brain damage, can no longer speak and must be fed through a tube to his stomach, court previously heard.

Bourdeaux admitted in a journal found by police last year after her arrest that she tried for two hours to smother the boy on May 24, 2010, but even though his heart had stopped twice he kept fighting for his life.

She did not take him to Alberta Children’s Hospital until three days later, when she asked a neighbour to drive her there. En route, she told him she had “suffocated” him. He took her to hospital, then immediately called police.

Bourdeaux had faced a charge of second-degree murder in connection with the earlier child’s death in 2004, originally believed to be unexplained, but Crown prosecutor Janice Rea and defence lawyer Katherin Beyak worked out a plea bargain on the lesser charge.

It was only after her former common-law husband Ted Fewer died accidentally on May 2, 2010, Rea previously told court at Bourdeaux’s bail hearing, that she admitted in a journal that she had killed Sean years before.

“Dear Ted. Now that you are gone, I can confess about Sean,” said Rea, reading from the journal Bourdeaux wrote on the day she tried to kill the second son.

“That night (Sean) left us, it wasn’t actually while he was asleep.

“Due to me being very sick at the time, I didn’t know what to do. The crying wouldn’t stop, so I ended up putting a pillow over his face and made sure it was stopping his breathing. I know I shouldn’t have done it, but I did. I know that’s something any parent shouldn’t do. I knew that I couldn’t handle three kids, more or less, on my own. This is something that I can’t let anyone else know about until I am gone myself, which may be sooner than we all think.”

Rea said at the time of Sean’s death there was little in the way of a police investigation. She said Bourdeaux called police and told them that she “had put Sean down for a nap, returned about an hour later and found him not breathing.

“Police attended at the residence and medical investigators came but, at that time,” she said, “Sean’s death was deemed to not be suspicious.”

Court previously heard that Bourdeaux became distraught about the accidental death of her former common-law husband, the father of the two boys and an older daughter, now nine, on May 2, 2010, when he was electrocuted when he tried to remove a mobile rocket that got caught in overhead wires at Strathmore.

After she tried to kill the second son, the daughter told police: “My mom told me she did this to (my brother) but didn’t really know why. I don’t know why she wanted to send (him) up to see Dad.”

The case has been adjourned for sentencing arguments.

http://www.vancouversun.com/news/Mother+admits+killing+attempting+kill+another/5200756/story.html

Note: She is to return to court Nov. 16 following a pre-sentence and psychological risk assessment.