Mother Drowns Son
Louise Desnoyers, 48 at the time, was in the middle of divorce and suffered from depression.
She entered the US from Montreal, Canada, on Monday, August 14, 2006 with her 8-year-old son, Nicholas Desnoyers-Langlois. Nicholas' body was found about 7:00pm the next day, drown in Lake Champlain.
His mother is now accused of 1st degree murder.
In an affidavit obtained by The Montreal Gazette, Louise Desnoyers, 48, she is alleged to have said her son was in a "nice place" when police questioned her about his whereabouts.
When asked about her son's death, the affadavit alleges Desnoyers "cupped her right hand and made a motion pushing down.
"She advised she held his head under water. She said, 'I kill him' in broken English."
Desnoyers allegedly told police where to find her son's body. Still in the water, the boy's wrist had been tied to a mooring that was determined to be an old cast-iron radiator, the affidavit alleges.
Police said the woman had tried to commit suicide, possibly by consuming windshield fluid or anti-freeze. The affadavit said police found Desnoyers tangled in barbed wire in a shed after responding to a call about a blood-stained abandoned car.
On August 18, 2006, Desnoyers pleaded not guilty Friday to drowning her son in Lake Champlain, and was taken to a Vermont state hospital for a month-long evaluation to determine whether she is capable of standing trial.
Jury selection for her upcoming trial will begin on April 21st, 2008, with opening statements the next day.
Resources...
http://www.timesargus.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080225/NEWS02/802250349/1003/NEWS02
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=f56e7820-5031-42c1-928c-c0aca89108ab&k=38452
http://www.canada.com/topics/news/national/story.html?id=a0513560-6341-423a-badf-93b87e3b8a5c&k=69696
http://www.cbc.ca/canada/montreal/story/2006/08/18/desnoyer-murder.html?ref=rss
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04-15-09
Desnoyers to face sentencing July 1, 2009
A hearing has been scheduled for July 1 at Vermont District Court in North Hero for prosecution and defense attorneys to argue about how much time Desnoyers should serve in prison, according to court records.
Second-degree murder typically carries a punishment of 20 years to life, but under the deal, prosecutors may request no more than 15 years. The defense may ask for no less than 10, according to term of the agreement, which was finalized during an emotional hearing March 26.
Defense and prosecution attorneys said that day they reached the accord because a trial carried risks for both sides.
Grand Isle County State's Attorney David Miller said he feared a jury might have convicted Desnoyers of a lesser charge, leading to a short prison sentence, or acquitted her altogether if the panel accepted the mental-health claim. The defense worried about a guilty verdict for premeditated murder and its corresponding prison sentence of 35 years to life, said her attorney, Bob Katims.
A gag order remains in effect and bars those involved from making public comments about the case outside court proceedings.
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http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=2009904150317
03-27-09
Montreal mom pleads no contest in son's drowning
Struggling to hold back her tears, longtime Montreal resident Louise Desnoyers entered a no-contest plea Thursday in a Vermont courtroom to a single charge of second-degree murder, in connection with the August 2006 drowning death of her 8-year-old son Nicolas.
With the plea-bargain arrangement, the 51-year-old Desnoyers avoided a trial that was to have begun next Monday with jury selection.
She also avoided the possibility of a conviction for first-degree murder, which would have carried at least a 30-year jail sentence.
The prosecution told a Thursday-afternoon court hearing in North Hero, Vt., that it wants Desnoyers to serve at least 15 years behind bars.
The defence is holding out for 10 years.
Arguments on her sentencing are to be heard at a later date.
She will also be on probation for life.
Resource...
http://www.montrealgazette.com/news/Montreal+pleads+guilty+drowning/1431252/story.html
Montreal mom convicted of killing son
Louise Desnoyers trembled and wept Thursday as a prosecutor described how the Montreal woman lured her 8-year-old son, Nicholas, into Lake Champlain late one night in August 2006, then shoved him underwater until he drowned and lashed his body to a submerged anchor.
03/31/08
Judge steps down from Denoyers case
A Vermont judge has recused himself from the case of a Montreal woman charged with drowning her 8-year-old son.
Louise Desnoyers, 50, is awaiting trial for first-degree murder. Judge Ben Joseph has been handling the case but court officials say he removed himself Thursday and issued a gag order preventing lawyers and police from discussing the case publicly. No reason was given for either decision.
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http://www.wcax.com/Global/story.asp?S=8080167&nav=4QcS
She dropped her head into a fistful of tissues as the state’s attorney read a suicide note police found shortly after the killing, while Desnoyers was recovering from life-threatening, self-inflicted wounds.
“Dear loves of my life,” she wrote in French to her estranged longtime romantic partner, Real Langlois, and their elder son. “I never wanted to cause you any harm, hurt you, humiliate you. I don’t have anything against you, but Nicholas is at peace with me.”
Law enforcement revealed the note and its contents for the first time Thursday as Desnoyers, 51, pleaded no contest and was convicted of second-degree murder for killing her son in Isle La Motte. The deal means Desnoyers likely will serve 10 to 15 years in prison before authorities deport her to Canada, where she will remain on probation for the rest of her life.
“You must agree to that transfer of probation,” Judge Michael Kupersmith said. “If you do not agree to that transfer, that in itself will constitute a violation of probation.”
Sentencing will occur in about two months, Kupersmith said during the 70-minute, tear-filled hearing in Vermont District Court in North Hero. The judge said he might reject the deal if a state pre-sentencing investigation uncovers anything unexpected. That possibility, Kupersmith predicted, is remote.
Resource...
http://www.burlingtonfreepress.com/article/20090327/NEWS02/90326030/1007