Winnipeg boy, 3, told mom he loved her before being fatally stabbed, murder trial hears
Witnesses recounted the night 3-year-old Hunter Smith-Straight was fatally stabbed in his sleep.
A jury heard the evidence in the trial for Daniel Jensen, who has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in the boy’s November 2019 death.
The Crown is arguing Jensen got mad at Hunter’s mom, Clarice Smith, who he was dating at the time and stabbed the child.
It was at the Northern Hotel bar on Main St. where witnesses have told jurors arguments between Jensen and Smith escalated into violence.
The Crown alleges on Oct. 30, 2019, Jensen assaulted Smith at the bar before walking to the couple’s Pritchard Avenue home where Hunter was found stabbed.
“He said he was going to take her son,” Olga Kennedy, a friend of Smith’s, testified about an argument she heard between the couple before they got to the bar.
Kennedy told the jury the comment was first made while she was out for the evening with a group of friends during a car ride from Kennedy’s apartment to Jensen and Smith’s home.
She testified she walked inside the home with Smith after Jensen made the comment and told the jury Smith started getting Hunter dressed. The trial heard relatives had been looking after the child.
“I asked where she’s taking him,” Kennedy told jurors. “I told her that she should just let him sleep.”
“He laid back down and told his mom he loved her.”
After stopping at the home, Kennedy told jurors the group carried on to the Northern Hotel where Jensen and Smith continued arguing
“He was being mean to Clarice with his words,” Kennedy told jurors.
She testified she stepped outside the bar for a smoke but then heard a ruckus inside.
“I went in the bathroom and Clarice was bleeding from her nose,” Kennedy told the jury.
She testified she went back outside and saw Jensen walking backwards away from the bar, waving his hands towards his body which she interpreted as him gesturing to “bring it on.”
Bar employees testified they also heard the couple arguing and saw Smith bleeding.
“I heard a couple customers screaming for me,” vendor attendant Shaun Soltes testified.
He too gave evidence he saw Jensen leave the bar shortly after discovering Smith bleeding and made sure he was gone.
His co-worker, bartender Elaine Cook, told the court she went to help Smith.
“Clarice was crouched down and she was bleeding,” Cook testified. “She was crying.”
Court heard Smith went back to her friend’s place after leaving the bar, arranging for family to continue caring for Hunter. It wasn’t long before she got a call telling her to get home after the boy was found critically injured.
Jensen is presumed innocent.
The trial continues Monday.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Which Canadian cities have the highest and lowest grocery prices?
Where you live plays a big factor in what you pay at the grocery store. And while it's no secret the same item may have a different price depending on the store, city or province, we wanted to see just how big the differences are, and why.
'State or state-sponsored actor' believed to be behind B.C. government hacks
The head of British Columbia’s civil service has revealed that a “state or state-sponsored actor” is behind multiple cyber-security incidents against provincial government networks.
Swarm of 20,000 bees gather around woman’s car west of Toronto
A swarm of roughly 20,000 bees gathered around a woman’s car in the parking lot of Burlington Centre.
Mother assaulted by stranger while breastfeeding baby in her car: Vancouver police
A person was arrested in East Vancouver Thursday after allegedly entering a car while a mother was breastfeeding her four-month-old boy.
More than half the Canadians once detained in Syrian camps for suspected ISIS family members have returned home
A total of 29 Canadians have been freed from detention camps in northeast Syria and brought back to Canada since human rights advocates began lobbying for their release years ago.
Rare severe solar storm Friday could bring spectacular aurora light show across Canada
A rare and severe solar storm is expected to bring spectacular displays of the northern lights, also known as aurora borealis, across much of Canada and parts of the United States on Friday night.
Canada abstains from Palestinian UN membership vote but supports two-state solution
Canada was one of 25 countries that abstained from a United Nations vote on Palestinian membership that passed with overwhelming support on Friday.
Amish youth experience a rite of passage called Rumspringa. It’s not what you might think
The idea of “Rumspringa” has a specific spot in the American imagination. A rite of passage for young people in some Amish communities, Rumspringa is seen by most outsiders as a wild time away from strict Amish rules, when teenagers can experiment with the modern vices of the world.
Djokovic needs medical attention after getting knocked on the head by a water bottle at Italian Open
Novak Djokovic needed medical attention after apparently getting knocked on the head by a water bottle after a win at the Italian Open on Friday.