Trial begins for Ont. teen accused of newborn daughter’s murder

The now 17-year-old teenager is standing trial in Bradford West Gwillimbury in the death of a baby in 2024.

Warning: This article contains graphic and disturbing details.

An Alliston, Ont. teen accused of murdering her newborn daughter is now on trial more than a year after being charged by police with first-degree murder.

The teen, 17, cannot be named under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. She is accused of killing her child after giving birth in Nov. 2024 at her Alliston home.

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According to the Crown, the newborn was found in a toilet with several stab wounds.

In his opening address to the court, Crown Attorney Indy Kandola said the teen was pregnant and hid that she had given birth at her family home, where its alleged she killed the baby that was discovered lifeless in a toilet by the teen’s grandmother who initially believed it was a doll.

The court heard police later found a knife with DNA from the baby.

The Crown said the court will hear from three doctors along with evidence and analysis from police investigators over the course of the two-week trial in Bradford and Barrie.

The prosecution told the court Google searches and ChatGPT prompts on the accused’s cell phone from around the time the baby was born will be presented, including one prompt about how to dispose of a body.

The court heard from the teen’s father who said his daughter felt sick the night prior to the baby being found dead.

He testified his daughter told him she had stomach pains but gave birth to the child on her own in the bathroom. Her father testified learning the teen hid the pregnancy from her parents because the father may have been someone other than her current boyfriend.

Her father confirmed in court he told police that his daughter “just didn’t want to have” the baby.

The teen is represented by Toronto lawyer Melina Macchia. The trial is scheduled to continue Thursday.