BY KEITH LACEY
A baby was so emaciated and malnourished when rushed to hospital late last April, a doctor was worried the boy might die.
His parents pleaded guilty to failing to provide the necessities of life for their son and two-year-old daughter Monday in a Sudbury courtroom.
The names of the parents are being protected under provisions of the Family Act as there is a separate proceeding underway against the parents from court proceedings. There is no court order prohibiting the publishing of their names.
The father is 29 and the mother is 22.
A neighbour provided the Children?s Aid Society with an anonymous tip about the children?s care.
The young mother could be heard crying throughout the court hearing, which lasted about 30 minutes. Assistant Crown attorney Alex Kurke read a disturbing set of agreed facts Monday when the parents pleaded guilty to two of three charges each was facing.
After hearing the facts, Justice Louise Gauthier agreed a pre-sentence report should be prepared. Both parents will return to court Thursday, May 12 for sentencing.
Kurke told the court the CAS had been involved with both children in the past and there were allegations the family?s Flour Mill residence was filthy.
It?s alleged both parents neglected their two children and failed to provide the necessities of life between the fall of 2003 and the time of their arrest in April 2004.
A CAS worker visited the residence and was shocked at what she saw, said Kurke.
?The residence smelled so strongly of urine and feces, it made her eyes water,? said Kurke.
The CAS worker reported the two-year-old girl ?was soaked in urine,? he said.
Both parents acknowledged the condition of the apartment was unacceptable to be raising children and the father started cleaning up, he said.
When the CAS worker came across the eight-month-old boy, she immediately recognized he was very ill, emaciated and underdeveloped, he said.
The baby also smelled strongly of urine.
The mother told the CAS worker she hadn?t taken the baby to the doctor in about five months because she was feeling depressed, wasn?t taking medication and didn?t trust her doctor, said Kurke.
In one of the bedrooms, the CAS worker saw a pile of 50 to 60 urine-soaked diapers stacked about four feet high against one wall. The crib didn?t have a mattress and the railings and floor to the crib were covered in feces as were parts of the wall.
When the CAS worker determined the children should be brought to the hospital immediately, the mother again commented she was a terrible mother who should not be allowed to have children, said Kurke.
After the children were brought to the hospital, police were contacted and both parents were charged.
Court heard the baby boy weighed seven pounds, eight ounces at birth, and had only grown to 11.2 pounds during the first eight months of his life. The two-year-old girl was very dirty and pale, but didn?t appear to be malnourished or suffering any physical problems.
Doctors placed the baby on a feeding tube and the progress made in only a few days was tremendous as significant weight gains were made, said Kurke.
The doctor ordered the baby be kept under careful watch during a one-month stay in hospital.
The two-year-old was smiling, playing with toys, watching television and communicating with hospital staff within a couple of days of her visit to
hospital. She was released from hospital three days after being admitted. Both children remain under the jurisdiction of the CAS.
When the children were brought to hospital, the mother sought psychiatric care.
The father told the CAS worker he worked long hours and wasn?t home often with his children, said Kurke.
Both parents will remain free on bail until their sentencing hearing.
