'I kissed him on the forehead four times': Grandfather testifies in trial of Regina mother accused of killing son
'I kissed him on the forehead four times': Grandfather testifies in trial of Regina mother accused of killing son
Warning: This story contains details some readers may find disturbing
Emerson Whitby was a busy, inquisitive toddler who was always moving around.
That’s how his grandfather Travis Jolly described the 18-month-old boy as he detailed the last time he saw his grandson alive during trial at the Court of King’s Bench on Tuesday.
“I kissed him on the forehead four times and I told him that his grandpa loved him so much,” Jolly testified about his final farewell with Emerson. “That was the last time I saw my grandson alive.”
Chelsea Whitby, Emerson’s mother, is on trial for second-degree murder in her son’s death. He died from blunt force trauma to the head on June 10, 2020.
Whitby, 27, and Emerson’s father were not in a relationship at the time of his death. However, they did have an informal custody agreement. Emerson spent one day a week and every other weekend with his dad and grandparents.
The last time his paternal grandparents saw Emerson alive was June 9, 2020. Jolly told court the boy did not get hurt that day in their care. However, Emerson sustained an injury while in his mother’s care, a few weeks before his death that resulted in two dark bruises around his eyes.
Jolly told court the boy was noticeably docile and less active in the days following his injury.
Emerson appeared to be back to normal on June 9, besides the visible bruises around his eyes along with new bruises on his jawline, which Jolly was told were a result of the beaded lanyard that attached to the toddler’s soother.
“I was relieved that he was getting better,” Jolly told court. “He was the Emerson that I knew, the Emerson that gets into everything and the Emerson that makes noise.”
Emerson returned to his mother’s care the night of June 9. He died the next day.
Doctors told Whitby the injuries were not self-inflicted.
“I honestly don’t have an idea of how it happened,” Whitby told the coroner during an interview on the day her son died.
Autopsy photos show bruises on Emerson’s forehead, jawline, nose, chest and shoulders.
Jolly testified he never noticed the bruising on Emerson’s forehead the day before, but it was visible when he saw him in the hospital.
A Regina police officer who testified on Tuesday told court he overheard Whitby offer two different explanations for the bruises on Emerson’s face to two different family members while at the hospital.
Whitby told one person the bruises were a result of the paramedics performing CPR. She told another family member they were from his soother lanyard. The officer told court he found the inconsistencies odd.
According to witness testimony, when Whitby learned police obtained a search warrant for her house she asked officers, “Does that mean I’m going to jail for hurting my child?”
In court, the Crown played a video recording of Whitby’s interview with police two days after Emerson’s death. In the video, she breaks down crying and denies any fault.
“I didn’t hurt him. I didn’t hurt him,” she told police.
Emerson’s paternal grandmother and his father are expected to testify Wednesday as the trial enters its third day.
Foreign interference special rapporteur David Johnston has resigned, CTV News has confirmed. In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Johnston cited the intense politicization of his appointment and work, as the reason for his coming departure.
Fires across the country are burning millions of hectares of land but what does that really look like? CTVNews.ca compared the blazes to some cities and lakes in the country showing just how big they have gotten.
Former U.S. president Donald Trump is facing 37 felony charges related to the mishandling of classified documents, according to an indictment unsealed Friday that alleges that he described a Pentagon 'plan of attack' and shared a classified map related to a military operation.
Former U.K. Prime Minister Boris Johnson shocked Britain on Friday by quitting as a lawmaker after being told he will be sanctioned for misleading Parliament.
Despite the alarming facts and figures, experts say Canada is far more reactive than it is proactive when it comes to wildfires and they’re calling for a national campaign on wildfire education to better prepare for the future.
Showers are predicted Saturday over the aggressive wildfire threatening Tumbler Ridge, but forecasters say thunderstorms could sweep through the parched region without bringing any rain.
Air Canada says it made a mistake in rejecting some compensation claims from the thousands of travellers affected by delayed flights due to computer malfunctions.
The head of Saskatoon’s chamber of commerce responding with frustration to the city’s announcement of a $75 million deficit over the next two years — and the tax hikes that will likely be needed to help makeup some of the the shortfall.
Winnipeg police say a woman is in hospital with severe injuries after she was allegedly stabbed by a man in what police describe as a completely random and unprovoked attack.
Disturbing new details about a man accused of kidnapping and sexually assaulting women in Calgary have come to light, as court documents exposing accounts from his alleged victims have been unsealed.
Calgary police are warning the public about a high-risk offender who was released into the community on Friday after spending time behind bars for a series of sexual assaults.
Alberta Premier Danielle Smith named her new cabinet Friday, about two weeks after her United Conservative Party took the majority of seats in Alberta.
A Vaughan man thought he had done the right thing by equipping his brand new SUV with tracking technology offered by the manufacturer — but when it was stolen, he faced plenty of roadblocks sharing that location with the police chasing after it.
Hundreds of counter-protesters gathered near three schools in Ottawa's west end on Friday to take a stand against a B.C. man who is protesting what he calls "gender ideology."
Foreign interference special rapporteur David Johnston has resigned, CTV News has confirmed. In a letter to Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, Johnston cited the intense politicization of his appointment and work, as the reason for his coming departure.
The Sir John A. Macdonald Parkway in Ottawa's west end will be renamed Kichi Zībī Mīkan, if approved by the National Capital Commission's board of directors.
Authorities in West Vancouver say it's lucky more people were not harmed when a driver crashed his car through the entrance of a Whole Foods Friday, coming to a stop in the busy produce section.
An "incredibly volatile" wildfire is moving closer to the B.C. community of Tumbler Ridge and officials are urging the roughly 150 people who have stayed behind—in spite of an evacuation order—to leave immediately.
Montreal police (SPVM) stats for 2022 show that crime went up dramatically in 2022 and, taking COVID-19 pandemic numbers into account, violent crimes have been on the rise overall since 2017. In addition, motor vehicle thefts skyrocketed, having more than doubled since pre pandemic years.
A chain of illegal magic mushroom dispensaries in Ontario is determined to open a location in Montreal this summer despite the threat of a crackdown by Mayor Valerie Plante.
Wildfire officials are sending an additional 20 firefighters to help battle an out-of-control blaze that has burned more than two square kilometres of forest and cut off a major highway on Vancouver Island.
A vehicle detour route that is serving as a lifeline between eastern and western Vancouver Island amid a raging wildfire will be closed for much of the day Friday.
Nova Scotia says it has identified more details about the records stolen in a file transfer service cyber attack, impacting teachers, students and health care workers' records.
A tenant displaced in the downtown Sudbury fire last month said her hotel is denying her request to move her room to a centralized location following an attempted break-in.
About 40 people who say they've been impacted by an increase in crime since the Living Space homeless shelter moved into their neighbourhood have taken their messages to the street.
Police have shut down a section of Highway 401 westbound between Woodstock and Cambridge after a crash involving a transport truck and an Ontario Ministry of Transportation (MTO) vehicle.
The Waterloo Region Integrated Drug Strategy (WRIDS) is sounding the alarm after a significant number of drug overdose and poisonings were reported over the last few days.
