The manslaughter trial involving the death of 15-month-old Nathaniel McLellan resumed Monday at the London Courthouse, with the defence calling his mother back to the witness stand.
Rose-Anne Van De Wiele entered her ninth day of testimony, continuing to outline the circumstances surrounding her son’s death in October 2015 after he spent time at a Strathroy home daycare run by Meggin Van Hoof. During her evidence, Van De Wiele became emotional as she described finding her son unresponsive at the daycare and transporting him to hospital.
During questioning by defence lawyer Geoff Snow, she told the court she initially met alone with both medical staff and police and said it took nine months before she learned more details about how her son died. She testified that while grieving, she struggled to process the information she received and clung to the hope the incident was an accident.
Van De Wiele said doctors later advised her that Nathaniel’s death was caused by a non-accidental brain injury linked to oxygen deprivation, blunt force trauma, a fall, or a seizure. She maintained that her son was healthy when she dropped him off and believed the fatal injury occurred afterward.
Van Hoof, 46, has pleaded not guilty to a charge of manslaughter.
Earlier in the trial, Justice Michael Carnegie rejected a defence application alleging abuse of process by the Crown. Originally scheduled to last one month, the trial has since been extended by an additional five weeks.
Testimony is expected to continue with Van De Wiele returning to the stand.
Written by: L. Dickson