"I have suffered from deep bouts of depression, anger, bitterness and I often wondered if I would ever be able to find the joy and laughter I once knew as a young mother.
The heartbreak and pain of losing Kenneth was so unimaginable but to be declared his murderer has unrelentingly tortured my mind and the depths of my soul.
The truth didn't seem to matter and even my own family chose to believe your expert opinion."
VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT: TAMMY MARQUARDT;
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BACKGROUND: On February 1, 2011, the College of Physicians and Surgeons of Ontario found that Charles Smith had committed acts of professional misconduct and that he was incompetent. Before striking him from the College Register, the College received six victim impact statements which are being published in their entirety on this Blog over a series of posts. These statements provide extraordinary insight into the harm caused to the victims by Smith, his protectors in the Chief Coroner's office, the College, the Hospital for Sick Children in Toronto, and all of the other individuals and institutions who failed to stop Smith when they had a chance.
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BACKGROUND OF THE CASE: The Ontario Court of Appeal quashed the murder conviction of the Toronto mother who was imprisoned for life on the basis of flawed testimony from pathologist Charles Smith in February, 2011. “We recognize this has been a terrible ordeal for you and it’s tragic it has taken so long to uncover the flawed pathology that led to your conviction in 1995,”Justice Marc Rosenberg told Tammy Marquardt Thursday morning. “We agree … there was a miscarriage of justice,” Rosenberg said on behalf of a three-judge panel. The 38-year-old Scarborough native spent nearly 14 years in prison after being convicted of murdering her 2-year-old son, Kenneth Wynne. While other victims of Smith’s mistakes have since been acquitted, Marquardt’s “dilemma” is that fresh evidence in her case only allows a court to go as far as ordering a new trial, Lockyer told the court. The evidence is still ambiguous about how the child died but strongly suggests he died as a result of an epileptic seizure, Lockyer said. In his short life, Kenneth had suffered from asthma and pneumonia and had been treated for seizures eight times. Smith opined the cause of death was asphyxia, likely the result of smothering or suffocation. That remains a possibility, given an absence of hard evidence about why Kenneth died, the appeal court was told on Thursday. At the same time, two neurologists from the Hospital for Sick Children who independently examined the boy’s medical records found his demise was consistent with a sudden unexplained death from epileptic seizure. While three-judge panel set aside Marquardt’s conviction, the Crown has not indicated whether it intends to proceed with a new trial. The court, meanwhile, extended Marquardt’s bail. The appeal court decision came after forensic experts reviewed the conclusions of the former pediatric pathology superstar and found them illogical and “completely” unscientific. Smith’s evidence dovetailed with the Crown’s theory at the time, that Marquardt had suffocated Kenneth in a moment of anger and frustration. But he was wrong in supporting the Crown’s theory and his testimony denied the jury the option of concluding the child had instead died as a result of a seizure, Crown counsel Gillian Roberts told the court. Marquardt said she found him twisted up in bed sheets and obviously distressed. He was taken to hospital, but died three days later, after being taken off life support. Nearly two years ago, Marquardt was released on bail. She had been incarcerated in the Grand Valley women’s prison in Kitchener. Kenneth died 17 years ago, in October, 1993. Her other sons, who she named Keith, now 16, and Eric, 14, live somewhere in Canada, but never had further contact with their mother.
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VICTIM IMPACT STATEMENT: TAMMY MARQUARDT;
"To be accused and convicted of the murder of Kenneth was the beginning of my nightmare," the statement begins.
"A nightmare that just got worse and seemingly unending as i entered into the harsh and unnerving Canadian penal system," it continues.
"Prison became my reality for the next 13 years. I woke up each day to prison's unpredictable craziness, endured the taunting, name calling and death threats and went to bed each night wondering whether my two sons were in good and loving homes. Were they healthy, happy and doing well in school? I starved for news of them but none came. And so, when I wasn't dealing with the cold, dankness and inhumanity of prison I hoped that someone, anyone would believe me and that I would be exonerated and free. I prayed, oh how, I prayed that I would be granted one more miracle, being united with my boys.
I have suffered from deep bouts of depression, anger, bitterness and I often wondered if I would ever be able to find the joy and laughter I once knew as a young mother.
The heartbreak and pain of losing Kenneth was so unimaginable but to be declared his murderer has unrelentingly tortured my mind and the depths of my soul.
The truth didn't seem to matter and even my own family chose to believe your expert opinion.
There is nothing that can be done to erase the horror of losing a child and years of imprisonment. I wish there was. I wish an apology from you would be the magically cure but although it would be comforting to know that you are sorry for the devastation you have caused, it would not and could not stop the longing for the return of Kenneth and his two brothers."
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PUBLISHER'S NOTE: The Toronto Star, my previous employer for more than twenty incredible years, has put considerable effort into exposing the harm caused by Dr. Charles Smith and his protectors - and into pushing for reform of Ontario's forensic pediatric pathology system. The Star has a "topic" section which focuses on recent stories related to Dr. Charles Smith. It can be accessed at:
http://www.thestar.com/topic/charlessmith
For a breakdown of some of the cases, issues and controversies this Blog is currently following, please turn to:
http://smithforensic.blogspot.com/2010/08/new-feature-cases-issues-and_15.html
Harold Levy: Publisher; The Charles Smith Blog; hlevy15@gmail.com
