Mother of Quebec toddler found by Ontario highway faces criminal charge

The Montreal mother who allegedly abandoned her daughter in a field in Ontario last month has been charged with criminal negligence causing bodily harm.

The 34-year-old woman, whose name is under a publication ban to protect her daughter’s identity, appeared on Thursday as part of her bail hearing at the courthouse in Salaberry-de-Valleyfield, Que., west of Montreal.

She has already been charged with unlawful abandonment of a child after allegedly leaving her three-year-old daughter in a rural area two weeks ago.

“The investigation is still ongoing and we continue to receive evidence,” said Crown prosecutor Lili Prévost-Gravel, adding some of the evidence was used to lay the latest charge.

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An Ontario health centre recently completed a detailed health assessment of the girl, which Prévost-Gravel said was part of the evidence she received. The maximum sentence for criminal negligence causing bodily harm is 10 years.

The mother appeared to be listening attentively to police testimony on Thursday during the bail hearing. On several occasions she burst into tears, and at other times she seemed surprised by the testimony.

A publication ban was issued for any evidence heard during the hearing, meaning the content of the testimony can’t be reported on.

Section 517 of the Criminal Code is used “when a person is criminally charged and there is a possibility that the case will go before a jury. This is to preserve the evidence and ensure a fair trial,” Prévost-Gravel said.

The prosecution wants the mother to remain in custody, Prévost-Gravel said.

The mother reported her daughter missing on June 15 at a business in Coteau-du-Lac, west of Montreal, and told police she had no memory of the previous six hours or the girl’s whereabouts.

Quebec provincial police and volunteer search teams spent days combing roadsides and forests in southwestern Quebec before discovering the accused had travelled to Ontario.

The girl was found alive and conscious in Ontario on June 18 by Ontario Provincial Police officers, who had launched their own search.