Disclaimer: Some readers may find images or details in this story upsetting.
REGINA – The first witness in the trial for a Regina couple accused of second degree murder described finding items that can be used for binding during the trial’s second day on Tuesday.
Kevin and Tammy Goforth are facing second degree murder charges in the death of a four-year-old who was in their care August of 2012. They are also accused of abusing and neglecting the victim’s younger sister.
It was only the second day of the scheduled three-week trial and emotions were already running high in the courtroom.
The mother of the girls was shaking and wept as the Crown’s first witness, a member of Regina Police’s forensic identification unit (FIU), went through evidence seized from his search of the Goforth’s home back in 2012.
Cst. Garth Fleece presented a number of items believed to be used as restraints, including a piece of material with a thick wad of hair, tape and cargo straps found hanging from a rack.
Fleece also described the girls’ bedroom, where he found what was believed to be blood on the wall and cardboard stained with what was also believed blood and feces.
In the defence’s cross-examination, the lawyer’s for Tammy and Kevin Goforth pointed out that officers were there to search specifically for items that could be used for binding, and noted certain belongings in the home like toys and coloring books.
The second witness, Cst. Tyler Boynton of the FIU testified later in the afternoon. He was responsible for taking photos of the four-year-old victim’s injuries in hospital and in court detailed an extensive list of bruises, abrasions, and skin discoloration discovered over much of the girl’s body.
“The limbs visible to me were very…skinny,” he said of his first observation of the young girl in hospital.
The jury will hear testimony from 16 different witnesses over the course of the trial. It’s expected child protection workers with the Ministry of Social Services will testify Wednesday morning.
The girls can’t be identified because of a court order.
Comments