Court hears closing arguments in trial of mother, former partner charged with murder of her baby

A mother and her former boyfriend stood on trial for the 2021 death of her baby and the defendants laid blame on one another. CTV’s Katie Griffin reports.

Closing arguments are now underway in the trial of an Ottawa mother and her former boyfriend accused of killing her seven-week-old son.

Boravy Buth and Patrick O’Connor have pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the death of Colton in October 2021.

Through their lawyers, the defendants pointed fingers at each other for who’s responsible.

Buth’s lawyer, Natasha Calvinho, said O’Connor was the only one who could say what happened.

“He was the last person to see Colton alive, and he was the first person to see Colton dead,” Calvinho told the jury.

The pair told police Colton had fallen off the bed.

Court heard testimony from a forensic pathologist that the baby’s injuries were too severe for that.

“Head injury, meaning blunt force trauma to the head causing fatal brain damage, compression of the chest causing congestion and bruising on the chest,” Dr. Christopher Milroy stated during his testimony in March.

“There were metaphyseal fractures in both of his legs which are caused by “twisting and pulling of the leg,” he added. “They are associated with being an inflicted injury in children. In other words, they don’t come about by normal daily activity handling of a child. Has to be more than that.”

O’Connor’s lawyer told the jury he wasn’t in the room when it happened and argued Buth was responsible.

“This thud that was heard, that is when the fatal injury occurred or otherwise, she inflicted it when Mr. O’Connor was asleep,” Shira Brass told the jury.

Calvinho revisited some expletive-laced messages from O’Connor to Buth that had been presented to the jury at trial that included O’Connor threatening to kill Buth as a way to show a “cycle of abuse,” Calvinho told the jury.

“Mr. O’Connor’s a criminal. Mr. O’Connor is an emotionally abusive partner. He’s a manipulator and a controlling man,” Calvinho said.

O’Connor’s lawyer acknowledged he’s not perfect, but that Buth’s theory of what happened is implausible.

“This is coming from someone who has a history of proven dishonesty, financial dishonesty, misleading statements, self-serving conduct,” Brass said. “She has shown she will lie when it benefits her. She has the strongest motive to lie—she’s charged with murder. Her freedom depends on shifting blame.”

Over the course of the seven-week trial Buth took the stand in her own defence, O’Connor did not. Superior Court Justice Kevin Phillips emphasized to the jury that it was O’Connor’s right not to testify and that it can’t be used against him.

The Crown will present its closing arguments before Phillips provides instructions to the jury ahead of deliberations.

The trial started on March 3.

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