'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.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
BREAKING Honda to get up to $5B in govt help for EV battery, assembly plants
Honda is set to build an electric vehicle battery plant next to its Alliston, Ont., assembly plant, which it is retooling to produce fully electric vehicles, all part of a $15-billion project that is expected to include up to $5 billion in public money.
BREAKING New York appeals court overturns Harvey Weinstein's 2020 rape conviction from landmark #MeToo trial
New York’s highest court on Thursday overturned Harvey Weinstein’s 2020 rape conviction, finding the judge at the landmark #MeToo trial prejudiced the ex-movie mogul with improper rulings, including a decision to let women testify about allegations that weren’t part of the case.
1 arrested in northern Alberta during public shelter order
Residents of John D'Or Prairie, a community on the Little Red River Cree Nation in northern Alberta, were told to take shelter Thursday morning during a police operation.
Secret $70M Lotto Max winners break their silence
During a special winner celebration near their hometown, Doug and Enid shared the story of how they discovered they were holding a Lotto Max ticket worth $70 million and how they kept this huge secret for so long.
Remains from a mother-daughter cold case were found nearly 24 years later, after a deathbed confession from the suspect
A West Virginia father is getting some sense of closure after authorities found the remains of his young daughter and her mother following a deathbed confession from the man believed to have fatally shot them nearly two decades ago.
Monthly earnings rise, payroll employment falls: jobs report
The number of vacant jobs in Canada increased in February, while monthly payroll employment decreased in food services, manufacturing, and retail trade, among other sectors.
First in Canada procedure performed at London, Ont. hospital
A London man has become the first person in Canada to receive a robotic assisted surgery on his spine. Dave Myeh suffered from debilitating, chronic back pain that led to sciatica in his right now and extreme pain in his lower back.
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.