Jeffery Baldwin

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

Five year old Jeffrey Baldwin died in 2002, after he withered away to the weight of a baby and being unable to lift his own head. Jeffrey‘s grandmother, Elva Bottineau, kept him and one of his sisters in a cold, fetid room, where they had to sleep among their own waste. The children's parents were barely out of childhood themselves, they had four kids in quick succession, and nearly as quickly as they were born they were taken away by children's aid and handed over to the grandparents.

 

Both Bottineau and her partner Norman Kidman, who are now serving life sentences after being convicted of second degree murder for Jeffrey's death, had previous convictions for child abuse when they were granted custody of Jeffrey and three siblings.  These convictions were only discovered by Catholic Children's Aid Society in its files after Jeffery's death.

 

After Bottineau's first child died of pneumonia in 1969 doctors found multiple untreated fractures and she was convicted of assault causing bodily harm. Bottineau then had two more children, who were a severely beat by Kidman and landed up in the hospital. He was convicted of two counts of assault causing bodily harm. Those two children later alleged horrific abuse and neglect, including being tied to their beds and locked in dog crates. Two different psychological evaluations cast major doubts on Bottineau's ability to care for children.

 

Jeffrey was frequently starved and he died because Bottineau failed to give him the necessary food and medical treatment he needed. Jeffrey weighed 21 pounds when he died which was less than he did on his first birthday. His grandparents were sentenced to life in prison for second-degree murder.

 

More than a decade after his tragic death, Jeffrey Baldwin's dream to become Superman has finally come true. A statue of the little boy dressed as the superhero was unveiled in a Toronto park. The life sized statue captures one of the happiest moments in Jeffrey's short life, when he wore the superhero's iconic red and blue suit with the 'S' shield emblazoned on his chest for Halloween one year.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

 

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/toronto/jeffrey-baldwin-s-grandmother-denies-responsibility-in-his-death-1.2450245