For one woman, the happy moments of bringing a baby into the world were torn drastically apart only hours later when her baby was smuggled out of the hospital.
The 29-year-old Kirkland Lake woman who was charged with the abduction of the newborn infant from the Sudbury Regional Hospital last November, returned to court Tuesday for an emotionally charged sentencing hearing. Brenda Batisse sat with her head hung and tears streaming down her face as the mother of the baby girl gave her testimony to the court.
The mother cannot be identified due to a court ordered publication ban.
Around 1 p.m. a woman wearing white nurses clothes entered the room, the mother said. Security cameras at the hospital showed Batisse wearing the described clothing at different times.
“Nurses were coming in and taking care of me and my baby all day,” she said. “I believed this woman was a nurse.”
She added it was the second time she had seen the woman that day.
“She came in right after the delivery, too, about two hours.”
The second time Batisse entered the room, she insisted on taking the baby, the mother said, offering that she take a shower. When the mother refused, Batisse said she needed to take the baby to be weighed.
“She asked why I was coming with her,” she said. “Then said go to the bathroom first because you're bleeding.”
Once in the bathroom, the mother heard the door close behind her.
“When I left she was sitting in the rocking chair with my baby... she was waiting for me,” she said. “When I came out of the bathroom, she wasn't there and I was getting worried.”
The Code Yellow – missing infant – was issued moments later, when staff confirmed Batisse was not actually a nurse at the hospital.
“I was shocked... I couldn't believe it was happening... it was a like a movie... it's impossible,” the mother recounted. “I was scared she might hurt my baby.”
Around 8 p.m. that evening, Batisse and the baby were located by police, safe in Kirkland Lake.
However, the mother wasn't reunited with her baby until 3 a.m. the next morning.
The woman told the court the incident has had a major impact on her.
“I'm very protective and extremely worried about my children all the time,” she said. “I'm checking on them every five minutes.”
She said she has a difficult time trusting people as a result, even to the extent of not allowing friends to take her children out for a walk.
“I have bad dreams, nightmares,” she continued. “At home, I check the doors to make sure their locked, and I do it every half hour, to make sure it's secure and my kids are safe.”
The mother said the incident has greatly affected her husband as well, however, he avoids thinking about it or talking about in an effort to forget.
“I don't think we can ever forget what happened to us, even though we're trying,” the mother said. “I still start crying when I pass by the hospital because of the bad memories.”
Other witnesses heard from at the sentencing hearing include a nurse, who was on duty at the time of the abduction, and a forensic psychologist, who examined Batisse following the incident. More witnesses are yet to be called. A date to continue the hearing will be scheduled on Friday morning.
