As a Saskatoon child abuse trial summarized, lawyers argued about whether statements made to social workers should be used as evidence.
The statements were made shortly after police arrived to a home on Lenore Drive on Dec. 7, 2020.
Police received reports of a child on a roof of a duplex.
After helping the then seven-year-old down, officers found the boy’s four-year-old brother confined in an empty room.
Court exhibit photos show the door was tied shut with yellow rope.
A 37-year-old woman and her 29-year-old boyfriend have been charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm, unlawful confinement and assault with a weapon.
They can’t be named because it would identify the children, who are protected under a court-ordered publication ban.
The children involved in the case are the woman’s nephews and her daughter.
Social workers interviewed the children, woman and her boyfriend. A judge will decide whether those statements can be admissible evidence in the trial.
Crown prosecutor Lana Morelli argued the statements were made “voluntarily to the Ministry of Social Services” and “should be admissible.”
While defense lawyer Jordan Graham questioned the validity and accuracy of the children’s statement.
“The reliability is certainly concerning,” he said — referencing the girl saying she had lived at the Lenore home for “a billion years.”
Graham raised an issue with not having an audio recording of the interviews. The social workers only took notes of their conversations.
Court heard the aunt told a social worker it was the first time she had locked her nephew in a room.
But earlier in the trial, the oldest boy testified they were often locked in a room with no furniture. He said his brother would urinate and defecate in the vent because he was afraid to call out to use the bathroom.
The pediatrician who assessed the boys after the window escape, testified the children were malnourished and had “unusual” patterns of bruising.
A judge is expected to make his decision on the admissibility of the statements made to social workers on June 3.