The father of a seven-year-old girl from Granby, Que., whose 2019 murder shocked the province and led to an inquiry has pleaded guilty to a forcible confinement charge.
He pleaded guilty before a Quebec Superior Court judge on Monday, ahead of a trial scheduled for January. In response, the Crown stayed a charge of criminal negligence causing death in connection with the girl’s death.
The girl’s stepmother was found guilty on Dec. 9 of second-degree murder, after jurors deliberated for about five hours.
The charge of forcible confinement relates to the fact the girl had been restrained with duct tape.
During her trial, the stepmother admitted to having wrapped the girl in multiple layers of tape on April 29, 2019, to prevent her from running away, but she denied putting tape on the young victim’s nose and mouth.
The stepmother returns to court on Dec. 17 for a sentencing hearing, and the father will have his hearing on Jan. 7.
A second-degree murder conviction carries an automatic life sentence, and it will be up to a judge to determine parole eligibility. The maximum sentence for forcible confinement is 10 years in prison.
Neither adult can be identified due to publication bans surrounding the identity of the young victim.
The girl’s death led the government to create a special commission on the province’s youth protection services.