A couple in Canada is accused of abusing their foster child so severely that he was found emaciated, drenched, and unresponsive in a locked basement room.
Prosecutors laid out disturbing allegations against Brandy Cooney, 43, and Becky Hamber, 45, during a trial that began in mid-September. Both women have pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder, confinement, assault with a weapon, and failing to provide the necessaries of life.
The 12-year-old boy, identified as L.L., was found dead on Dec. 21, 2022, in the women’s Milton, Ontario, home, according to the Canadian Broadcasting Corporation. Prosecutors say extended abuse by his caregivers led to his death.
They alleged Cooney and Hamber “hated, abused, and neglected” L.L. and his younger brother, J.L., The Independent reported. The boys were forced to wear wetsuits secured with zip ties, locked in their rooms under surveillance, made to sleep in tents, and fed pureed food similar to what infants eat.
Prosecutors also shared text messages between the women as evidence. They called L.L. a “loser” and an “idiot,” and Hamber at one point referred to herself as “Officer Hamber,” saying one of the boys was in “Hamber Cooney prison.” In another message, one woman wrote, “hope he gets an infection.”
The boys, both Indigenous, moved to the women’s foster home in 2017. By December 2022, Cooney and Hamber were planning to adopt them.
When paramedics arrived at the home on Dec. 21, they found L.L. unresponsive, soaking wet, and covered in vomit. Though he was 12, his extreme malnourishment made him appear about 6 years old. He was rushed to the hospital but did not survive.
A pathologist testified that L.L. may have died from hypothermia or cardiac arrest caused by severe malnourishment, though his exact cause of death remains unclear.
J.L., now 13, testified that the women told him to repeat false accusations about abuse by their previous foster family. He said he spent 90% of his time locked in his room and ate only pureed food during parts of his five years with the couple.
Defense attorneys argued Cooney and Hamber were managing children with special needs as best they could. They claimed the tents were therapeutic, the wetsuits were for bathroom issues, and the pureed food followed a mental health worker’s recommendation.
But other witnesses painted a different picture. Heather Walsh, the boys’ former foster parent, described L.L. as “a very enthusiastic, social little guy” who had made great progress before being moved.
“I think if someone else had adopted them, [L.L.] would be alive today,” she said. The trial is expected to continue through mid-December.
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