Real Child Name for Real Parents

March 12, 2015 permalink

In an item that has nothing to do with Children's Aid, babysitter Greg Dalley is on trial for causing the death of baby Noah Keizer. The story is here to contrast. In the rare cases where deaths in CAS care are in the news, the names are almost always suppressed. Although about a hundred children a year die under Ontario CAS watch, in the last two years only one name, ten-year-old Tyrese Sutherland, has been in the news.

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CLAIRMONT: Texts show accused killer Dalley was tired of babysitting Noah Keizer

NOAH KEIZER
An evidence photo of Noah Keizer captured on Greg Dalley's cellphone on July 13, 2012.

Hamilton Police Service photo

Mar 03, 2015, Hamilton Spectator, By Susan Clairmont

In the photo, Noah looks like he has been crying.

His eyes are red-rimmed. He is unsmiling. He looks unhappy. Tired.

But otherwise, healthy.

He is buckled into his stroller, wearing navy shorts and a khaki T-shirt.

He is looking up at the camera. Behind him are rows of margarine containers.

This photo of 26-month-old Noah Keizer was taken at 8:36 p.m. on July 13, 2012, at the No Frills store on Main Street East.

It was taken by Noah's babysitter, Greg Dalley.

Less than three hours later, Noah would be without vital signs. He would stop breathing and have no pulse. His mouth would be filled with blood.

And after that, Dalley, who was 25 then, would be charged with second degree murder.

The last photo of Noah, taken from Dalley's cellphone, was entered into evidence Monday as the murder trial entered its second week.

The jury has heard Noah died of blunt force trauma to his head. A pathologist is expected to testify that the injury was not self-inflicted.

On the witness stand all day was Lasaundra Grey. She lived a floor below Nicole Agnew and her son Noah at their King Street East apartment building.

Grey testified about visiting Dalley upstairs as he babysat Noah and waited for Agnew to come home from the bar she worked at. Grey sat outside on the balcony while Dalley made a bed for Noah on the living room floor using blankets.

They made plans to go to Hess Village later that night, after Dalley was done babysitting.

At one point, Grey went inside to get a Coke from the fridge and peeked in on Noah.

"I realized when he turned over there was something wrong. I noticed his face was a bit swollen."

She got Dalley, and he picked Noah up.

"I realized he was bloody and his face was really swollen," she said. "It was his nose leaking toward his ears and he had a big bump on his forehead ... I took him from Greg and placed him in my arms and tried to wash it off his face — the blood."

They cleaned the child up, iced his forehead and Grey's partner, Ashlyn Kashuba, who had arrived, called Agnew and put her on speaker phone.

"We told her that Noah got hurt," Grey testified.

Grey said she asked Dalley what happened and "he basically told us that he might have rammed himself into the wall because it's a thing he does or a thing that kids do."

Noah was crying and calling for his "Mama."

Grey reassured Agnew that her son was fine and reassured Noah that his mommy would be home soon.

Dalley put the child back to bed. Grey and Kashuba went to their apartment to get ready to go to Hess Village. They stayed in contact with Dalley by text.

Dalley appeared to be growing frustrated waiting for Agnew. The jury has heard she was asked to work late that night but even when her shift ended, she stayed at the bar and drank.

"I swear if she keeps neglecting him, I'm going to call CAD on her," Dalley texts, then corrects himself by texting "CAS" — Children's Aid Society.

Also: "She needs to hurry the f--- up ... and get here."

At 11:30 p.m. there is a knock at Grey and Kashuba's door.

It's Dalley, carrying Noah.

"Tell me if Noah's breathing. I don't know if he's breathing," Dalley shouts when they open the door.

Court hears the 911 call made by Grey.

"He's not breathing at all," she tells the call taker. "He's two years old ... For some reason, I think he bumped his head. He's been bleeding out of his mouth."

She is instructed to "put your mouth right over his nose and his mouth," to resuscitate him.

"He's bleeding out of his mouth and spitting up blood," says Grey.

She starts chest compressions and Dalley's voice comes on the line. He is polite, relatively calm.

"A police officer just arrived here," he says.

The line goes dead.

Susan Clairmont’s commentary appears regularly in The Spectator. sclairmont@thespec.com

905-526-3539 | @susanclairmont

Source: Hamilton Spectator