Inset: Brandy Cooney and Becky Hamber (Facebook). Background: The victim”s room in a photo taken after he died and filed as a court exhibit. (Ontario Superior Court).
The courtroom drama reached its climax as attorneys delivered their closing statements in the harrowing case of two foster mothers accused of such extreme abuse that it led to the tragic death of a child. The case centers on Brandy Cooney, aged 44, and Becky Hamber, aged 46, who are facing serious charges including first-degree murder, unlawful confinement, assault with a weapon, and failing to provide the necessities of life.
The incident that sparked the legal proceedings occurred when authorities discovered a 12-year-old boy, referred to as L.L., deceased in the women’s Milton residence in Ontario, Canada. The condition in which L.L. was found was shocking; he was unresponsive, drenched, and covered in vomit when emergency responders arrived on December 21, 2022.
According to reports from the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation, the boy was so severely malnourished that despite his age, his appearance was likened to that of a 6-year-old. The exact cause of L.L.’s death remains uncertain, though a pathologist suggested hypothermia or cardiac arrest due to malnutrition as possible culprits. However, a definitive conclusion could not be reached.
The somber trial, which commenced in September, has been closely watched, as the details of the alleged abuse have unfolded, painting a grim picture of the conditions faced by L.L. in his final days. As the legal process draws to a close, the community and those following the case await the verdict with bated breath, hoping for justice for the young boy who lost his life under such tragic circumstances.
L.L. was later pronounced dead — possibly from hypothermia or cardiac arrest due to severe malnourishment, a pathologist reported, though they stated they were unable to rule on an exact cause of death.
The trial began in September.
The former foster mother of L.L. and J.L. — who was L.L.’s younger brother — told the CBC it “feels like the trial that never ends.”
In their closing arguments, prosecutors alleged the women starved their foster children and kept them isolated in wet suits and helmets because they “hated” them. The prosecutors pointed to messages from the women, including a text where one of them allegedly wrote, “Shiver shiver dumb f–” and suggested using exercise as a way for the boys to stay warm.
About a month before L.L.’s death, Cooney texted Hamber, “Unfortunately my thoughts [are] he is suddenly going to die and im going to jail,” prosecutor Monica MacKenzie said, adding that this message showed the women knew the consequences of what they were doing.
However, defense attorneys argue that the children were difficult to handle and that measures such as the helmets and wet suits were to keep the kids from having bathroom accidents all over the place and to prevent them from hurting themselves. The defense has also contended that child aid workers and health professionals who checked on the boys knew about the women’s methods and never raised any concerns with them.
Since no jury is involved in the case, Superior Court Justice Clayton Conlan will decide the fates of the defendants.
