WINNIPEG – A sentencing hearing will continue today in Winnipeg for a teen convicted in the beating death of a young Indigenous woman where the crime was shared online.
The Crown is seeking an adult sentence of seven years in jail while the defence is arguing for a youth sentence of three years.
Nineteen-year-old Serena McKay’s body was found on the Sagkeeng First Nation in April 2017, and two girls were arrested after online videos showed McKay being brutally beaten.
Videos of the assault was played in court and showed McKay, with a bruised and beaten face, crying and begging for her attackers to stop.
Court has heard McKay was left outside with debilitating injuries and died of hypothermia.
The younger girl, who has since turned 17, pleaded guilty to manslaughter in January.
The older girl, who has since turned 18, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder in December and received a youth sentence of just over three years in jail, followed by two years of community supervision.
McKay’s mother told the hearing yesterday that her life has been a nightmare since the beating and she feels cheated because she never got to say goodbye to her daughter.
(The Canadian Press)