GUILTY Canada - Jasmine Lovett, mid 20s, and daughter, 2, Calgary, 16 April 2019 *Arrest*

[MistyWaters]

Very disappointing, no 1st degree murder charges.

Given the specific mention of the 1st degree murder of JL, I’m guessing the theory is the child was murdered first, without premeditation. Then he allegedly murdered JL and perhaps the argument was he panicked as opposed to preplanned. But that he hid the bodies expecting them to never be found and he lied about virtually everything ought to go against him. Hopefully this pathetic piece of skin will still be sentenced to the max 25 year parole eligibility on 2x 2nd degree convictions, concurrently.

BBM
Suspect to stand trial on two counts of second-degree murder | Calgary Herald
“The suspect in the slayings of a Calgary mother and her young daughter won’t face a charge of first-degree murder when he goes to trial, a judge ruled Tuesday.

Provincial court Justice Terry Semenuk found there was sufficient evidence for a jury to weigh charges of second-degree murder against Robert Leeming in the deaths of his ex-girlfriend, Jasmine Lovett and her 22-month-old daughter, Aliyah Sanderson.....

.....Leeming was charged with two counts of second-degree murder, but Crown prosecutor Doug Taylor argued he should have been committed to stand trial for first-degree murder in Lovett’s killing....”

 

[otto]

Trial for these murders begins today.

"A murder trial begins Tuesday for a Calgary man accused of killing a mother and toddler whose bodies were found weeks after their deaths, in a wooded area near Kananaskis.

Robert Leeming faces two charges of second-degree murder in the 2019 deaths of Jasmine Lovett, 25, and 22-month-old Aliyah Sanderson.
...

Their bodies were found on May 6 in a heavily wooded area near Grizzly Creek off Highway 40 in Kananaskis.​

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/trial-calgary-robert-leeming-jasmine-lovett-1.6207794

 

[MistyWaters]

Finally. I’m a little surprised there wasn’t a guilty plea considering all but regardless, soon will come Justice for Jasmine and Aliyah IMO.

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/trial-calgary-robert-leeming-jasmine-lovett-1.6207794
A murder trial begins Tuesday for a Calgary man accused of killing a mother and toddler whose bodies were found weeks after their deaths, in a wooded area near Kananaskis.

Robert Leeming faces two charges of second-degree murder in the 2019 deaths of Jasmine Lovett, 25, and 22-month-old Aliyah Sanderson.…..

……Prosecutor Doug Taylor and defence lawyer Balfour Der are running the four-week trial.

 

[otto]

Twitter updates.
Pled guilty to murder of Lovett, not guilty to murder of child.

https://twitter.com/cbcmeg?lang=en

 

[otto]

"Less than five hours after police launched an undercover operation targeting a man they believed killed a Calgary mother and her toddler, the suspected murderer led the officers to the two bodies buried in shallow graves in a wooded area in Kananaskis Country, according to prosecutor Doug Taylor.
...

Lovett had been shot and had suffered blunt force head injuries, according to a forensic pathologist. Her daughter had also suffered blunt force trauma to her head.​

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/trial-calgary-robert-leeming-jasmine-lovett-1.6207794

 

[otto]

Since he has pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder of Lovett, but not guilty to murdering the child, and since Lovett was shot, but the child died of blunt force trauma, is the argument that the child was alive when he left them in an isolated area? Is he looking for a reduced charge for the death of the child?

 

[otto]

Sounds like he tried to burn the bodies, but it didn't work as planned.

"A Calgary police officer says he smelled a strong odour of gasoline or solvent before he and a colleague found the bodies of a mother and daughter in a shallow grave southwest of the city two years ago.
...

May testified the bodies were wrapped in blankets and had blue plastic bags wrapped around their heads.

"We opened the blanket up to check to see what was inside and we discovered the body of a young child wrapped within this blanket and bag," he said.
...

May said the body of an adult female was found moments later. "We saw that there was an actual body of a deceased person here, a blue plastic bag wrapped around the head," May said. "Her eye is swollen. There's blood on her face. It looks like the left cheek is also swollen."​

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calg...ine-lovett-aliyah-sanderson-calgary-1.6209730

 

[MistyWaters]

Since he has pleaded guilty to 2nd degree murder of Lovett, but not guilty to murdering the child, and since Lovett was shot, but the child died of blunt force trauma, is the argument that the child was alive when he left them in an isolated area? Is he looking for a reduced charge for the death of the child?

No hint as to why his plea of not guilty regarding the child. My only guess is his defence is going to be the mother harmed the child, his reason for attacking the mother was to unsuccessfully attempt to protect the child. But if that’s his story, it falls apart as there’s no reason for him to not call 911. Transporting the bodies out west, buried in a shallow grave and burning evidence, all in an attempt to hide their deaths is not the act of an innocent, upstanding man IMO.

 

[otto]

No hint as to why his plea of not guilty regarding the child. My only guess is his defence is going to be the mother harmed the child, his reason for attacking the mother was to unsuccessfully attempt to protect the child. But if that’s his story, it falls apart as there’s no reason for him to not call 911. Transporting the bodies out west, buried in a shallow grave and burning evidence, all in an attempt to hide their deaths is not the act of an innocent, upstanding man IMO.

He must have some sort of alternative reality to explain the child's death. I'm wondering whether Leeming was babysitting and he severely injured the child. When the mother discovered the injuries, she got angry, so Leeming attacked her. I suspect that he will blame the child's injuries on the mother - it's a common story for murderous men to claim they murdered a woman because she harmed a child.

I suppose the goal is to avoid consecutive sentencing, or no parole for 25 years.

 

[Tortoise]

“The prosecution respectfully suggests that once all of the evidence is heard and considered in this case, there can be no doubt whatsoever that the accused, Robert Andrew Leeming, murdered Aliyah too.”

Jenavie Lovett testified that her sister and Mr. Leeming had an up-and-down relationship and she believed they were moving too fast.

[...]

Ms. Lovett said Mr. Leeming seemed to embrace co-parenting the little girl.

“He would cook for her. He would put Aliyah to bed. He would watch Aliyah if Jasmine had to leave the house,” she said.

“Robert seemed to be very fond of Aliyah. Everything was about Aliyah. He almost seemed to care more about Aliyah than he did about Jasmine.”

Calgary man admits to murder of woman but not guilty in death of her toddler

 

[otto]

It's actually a clever legal move for Leeming to plead guilty to second degree murder of the mother. The prosecution may have planned to argue second degree murder (injury without medical attention for the child?) and first degree murder of the mother after she discovered that he injured the child. I think that would have been easy to argue.

With a guilty plea of second degree murder of the mother, the prosecution almost has to completely change tactics and argue that the mother was killed during an argument and he murdered the child to hide his first murder.

“The prosecution respectfully suggests that once all of the evidence is heard and considered in this case, there can be no doubt whatsoever that the accused, Robert Andrew Leeming, murdered Aliyah too.”

Jenavie Lovett testified that her sister and Mr. Leeming had an up-and-down relationship and she believed they were moving too fast.

[...]

Ms. Lovett said Mr. Leeming seemed to embrace co-parenting the little girl.

“He would cook for her. He would put Aliyah to bed. He would watch Aliyah if Jasmine had to leave the house,” she said.

“Robert seemed to be very fond of Aliyah. Everything was about Aliyah. He almost seemed to care more about Aliyah than he did about Jasmine.”

Calgary man admits to murder of woman but not guilty in death of her toddler

Her sister describes Leeming as a carrying doting father figure. This would support the argument that Lovett harmed the 22 month old and he lost his mind.

 

[otto]

Today's trial update

"A stroller, a child's cursive writing book and burnt material were found near where Calgary police unearthed the bodies of a mother and daughter in a shallow grave ...

... a fire pit and a nearby culvert were searched

... police found purple material within the firepit and metal tubing of what appeared to be a child stroller ... more evidence was found in a crushed culvert 50 to 75 metres from the bodies ...

... the sole of a burnt shoe.

... drawing the conclusion that there's material that has been taken from the fire pit and just disposed of into this culvert.”
​

Investigator testifies stroller, burnt clothing found near bodies of Calgary mother, daughter

 

[musicaljoke]

Today's trial update

"A stroller, a child's cursive writing book and burnt material were found near where Calgary police unearthed the bodies of a mother and daughter in a shallow grave ...

... a fire pit and a nearby culvert were searched

... police found purple material within the firepit and metal tubing of what appeared to be a child stroller ... more evidence was found in a crushed culvert 50 to 75 metres from the bodies ...

... the sole of a burnt shoe.

... drawing the conclusion that there's material that has been taken from the fire pit and just disposed of into this culvert.”
​

Investigator testifies stroller, burnt clothing found near bodies of Calgary mother, daughter

Thanks for the updates Otto. This is certainly a very, very sad case.

 

[otto]

Was he was drunkenly decorating his home with raw bacon, or was he trying to obscure human blood with raw bacon?

"Police found chunks of raw bacon scattered throughout the home of double-murder suspect Robert Leeming ...

Crime scene photos ... pictures of a piece of bacon by a vent near the home’s front door, a large chunk of the meat stuffed under the cover of a dry sump hole in the basement floor and a slice of bacon draped across the back of a dining room chair. ...

Along with the strangely placed meat pieces, Weeks said police found the front door window obscured by cellophane and the door seemingly jammed shut by poles used in drywalling.

... also odd that there was a “pin code door lock” on the entrance to the master bedroom in the upstairs of the home.
​

Police found raw bacon scattered in murder suspect's home | Calgary Herald

 

[mewmew]

Was he was drunkenly decorating his home with raw bacon, or was he trying to obscure human blood with raw bacon?

"Police found chunks of raw bacon scattered throughout the home of double-murder suspect Robert Leeming ...

Crime scene photos ... pictures of a piece of bacon by a vent near the home’s front door, a large chunk of the meat stuffed under the cover of a dry sump hole in the basement floor and a slice of bacon draped across the back of a dining room chair. ...

Along with the strangely placed meat pieces, Weeks said police found the front door window obscured by cellophane and the door seemingly jammed shut by poles used in drywalling.

... also odd that there was a “pin code door lock” on the entrance to the master bedroom in the upstairs of the home.
​

Police found raw bacon scattered in murder suspect's home | Calgary Herald

This is positively the oddest thing I’ve read in a while

 

[MistyWaters]

This is positively the oddest thing I’ve read in a while

My thought as well.

 

[otto]

Sounds like he stole money from her after the murders.

"Lovett and Sanderson were killed between April 16 and 17, 2019, according to the agreed statement of facts. ...

Lovett and Sanderson were last seen on April 16, 2019, police said, adding that the last activity on Lovett’s bank account was two days later.
​

Man accused of murdering Calgary mom, toddler in 2019 enters guilty plea to one count | Globalnews.ca

 

[otto]

Lovett was beaten nearly to death, then shot, and that was reduced to second degree murder. It's not surprising that Leeming pleaded guilty to that murder charge. It seems he's trying to argue that the child died from a fall.

"Robert Leeming beat his girlfriend to near-death before finishing her off with a bullet to the head, a pathologist testified Friday.
...

Coetzee-Khan, who performed autopsies on both mother and daughter ... categorized both deaths as homicides.
...

He said Aliyah (22 month old) suffered blunt force trauma to the left, right and back of her head. She also showed injury to her lumbar spine.

“I don’t think it’s impossible to occur from a fall,” he said of fatal wounds."
​

Woman beaten, then fatally shot in the head, pathologist testifies | Calgary Herald

 

[otto]

There was an awful lot of violence against this 25 year old mother and her child.

"Deputy medical examiner Dr. Akmal Coetzee-Khan ... said Lovett had three separate fractures on her skull, which would have required a significant amount of force, including a crack that extended down to the base of her skull.
....

Coetzee-Khan said there was also a gunshot wound behind Lovett's left ear and two bullet fragments were removed.



He said [the 22 month old child] experienced bleeding in the brain and she would have likely succumbed within three to six hours from her injuries without medical treatment.
​

https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/calgary/medical-examiner-robert-leeming-jasmine-lovett-1.6213119

 

[Tortoise]

I think it's pointing towards Jasmine and Aliyah having been killed in the house, with Aliyah being found in her pyjamas. A possible explanation for the bacon being strewn around, especially inside an air vent near the front door, could be to try to confuse noses and mask the smell of bleach after a possible clean up of blood.