Social worker tells murder trial of 2 Ontario women that boy’s zip-tied pyjamas made her ‘uncomfortable’

WARNING: This story details allegations of child abuse.

The trial for two Burlington, Ont., women charged in the death of a 12-year-old boy in their care has heard from several people involved in treating the mental health of the child and his younger brother.

A social worker, therapist, psychiatrist and service co-ordinator recounted Brandy Cooney and Becky Hamber as saying they struggled to care for the boys, who they believed had experienced trauma, and told the court the women were seeking additional support.

One worker also testified she recorded “yellow flags” based on concerns about the children’s care.

The older boy, known in court as L.L., died in December 2022. The identities of L.L. and his younger brother, J.L., are protected under a publication ban.

At the time of L.L.’s death, Cooney and Hamber were in the process of adopting the two Indigenous brothers. The pair have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder.

Cooney and Hamber have also pleaded not guilty to charges of confinement, assault with a weapon — namely zip ties — and failing to provide the necessaries of life to J.L. 

The Ontario Superior Court judge-only trial began last month and is being heard by Justice Clayton Conlan in Milton. It is scheduled to continue into December. 

The Crown has argued Cooney and Hamber “despised, deprived and abused” L.L. and J.L., locking the boys in their rooms, restricting food and using zip ties to keep them in their clothes. 

Court was told that on the night of Dec. 21, 2022, the couple called 911 after L.L. stopped breathing. First responders found him soaking wet and wearing a wetsuit. One expert witness said L.L. was severely malnourished when he died. His autopsy did not identify a cause of death.

In questioning care providers, Crown attorneys Kelli Frew and Monica MacKenzie asked about their findings, impressions of L.L. and J.L., and interactions with the accused.

On Thursday, Halton-area social worker Stefanie Peachey testified about working with the boys and the couple for about a year.

She said her sessions focused on self-esteem, identity and “who they wanted to be,” and that she worried “the narrative around who [the boys] were … focused around negative experiences” and “whether they were good or bad.”

Frew asked if Peachey witnessed the behaviours the couple told her were occurring at home, such as tantrums.

“I never experienced any of those behaviours in session or in the waiting room,” the social worker said, adding she had a good rapport with L.L. and J.L., and found them to be polite. 

At first, Peachey said, she met with the boys in person and often one on one, but the COVID-19 pandemic forced a change to virtual appointments. She said she asked if they could use headphones for privacy, but it was obvious the adults were listening in since Hamber “emailed during a session to let me know one of the boys was lying to me.”

Peachey said Hamber and Cooney asked her not to ask the boys “direct questions” and suggested withholding sessions as punishment if the brothers lied. 

In summer 2020, she said, Hamber and Cooney told her they didn’t think the sessions were working out. She later shared her files with a new care provider, along with what she called “yellow flags,” which included a note about witnessing J.L. zip-tied into his pyjamas. 

Peachey said J.L. told her it was so he wouldn’t pee on things when he was upset, adding that was an issue she’d discussed with the women. 

Peachey said that made her “uncomfortable” and she did not think it was “a good parenting strategy,” but did not find it concerning enough to report it to children’s aid. 

“I thought it was something that just needed to be monitored,” she said. 

The defence lawyers representing Hamber and Cooney have suggested their clients were trying their best but struggling to manage L.L., whose behaviour included binge eating, manipulation and violent outbursts — including harming animals, stabbing a child with a pencil and at one point breaking Hamber’s arm.

The defence has also suggested L.L. and J.L. experienced significant trauma before coming into Cooney’s and Hamber’s care.

The lawyers have repeatedly asked witnesses if they believed the couple was diligently seeking support and advocating for the boys.

Peachey said they were “mostly good advocates” even if she disagreed with them at the end of their working relationship.

“They were certainly looking for support with the boys.”

A therapist who worked with the brothers, and a co-ordinator who helped connect Cooney and Hamber to services, also told the trial they thought the couple was seeking help.

On Friday, Dr. Alan Brown, a child and adolescent psychiatrist with Oakville Trafalgar Memorial Hospital, testified about care L.L. received in the hospital’s child and adolescent in-patient unit.

Based on his observations, Brown said, L.L. likely had disruptive mood dysregulation disorder, post-traumatic stress disorder (PTSD), reactive attachment disorder and attention deficit hyperactivity disorder (ADHD).

Brown said although Hamber asked him to admit L.L. for a longer stay in August 2019, he declined. L.L. was “quite calm, composed, happy, logical, coherent,” and not at risk of self-harm, Brown said. He added that L.L. had access to supports at home, including through children’s aid. 

Cooney’s lawyer, Kim Edward, asked Brown if he thought L.L. should have been admitted to a program for children with mental health and developmental needs in London, Ont. Brown agreed, noting he recommended it at the time. The trial has heard the program refused to accept L.L. as a patient, determining he was not the right fit. 

Brown said Hamber and Cooney were “obviously finding that not enough had been done yet” to help them manage L.L. He said he understood them to be “stressed and at times overwhelmed by the behaviours they described in the home.”

Brown said he did not see L.L. have outbursts, as described by Hamber and Cooney, in the hospital. During cross-examination, he acknowledged children can present differently at home than in care.

Monte MacGregor, Hamber’s lawyer, asked if L.L. could have deliberately concealed behaviours from the hospital workers, saying there was evidence he was a skilled manipulator.

“I think we would see flashes and elements of extreme behaviour,” Brown said. 

He added it was “possible” an eight-year-old could fool his team for weeks, but, “I don’t think, based on our observations, we saw evidence that would support that.”

If you’re affected by this report, you can look for mental health support through  resources in your province or territory.