Father's trial in baby's death hinges on circumstantial evidence, both Crown and defence say

The trial of a father accused of killing his infant daughter in 2016 heard closing arguments Wednesday, as the Crown said circumstantial evidence makes his guilt clear, but the defence argued it provides reasonable doubt.

The prosecutor told the judge evidence showed the baby had "significant physical trauma," saying Keifer Mecas, 34, killed Haelin Taylor, his three-month-old daughter, by violently shaking her in early 2016.

His lawyer argued that there was a reasonable doubt as to whether his client caused the baby's death.

Mecas has pleaded not guilty to manslaughter. His judge-alone trial, held before Justice Scott Abel at Court of King's Bench in Brandon, Man., began on April 16.

Haelin died on Jan. 23, 2016, almost three weeks after Virden RCMP were called about an infant in medical distress at a home in Sioux Valley Dakota Nation, about 40 kilometres west of Brandon.

The baby was rushed to hospital in critical condition but later died from her injuries.

RCMP deemed her death a homicide. Both of Haelin's parents were questioned by police, and Mecas was charged seven years later after multiple witnesses alleged he confessed in 2022 to hurting her.

Medical experts presented evidence Tuesday indicating the infant's fatal injury likely happened on Jan. 4, 2016, the same day she was taken to hospital.

Crown lawyer Jennifer Neufeld urged the judge to put his confidence in their evidence, which she argued shows Mecas is guilty.

Medical experts testified that the injuries indicated significant physical trauma had occurred that would have caused the baby to become unresponsive within seconds. Based on their severity, it appeared the injuries were caused by rapid acceleration and deceleration, the experts said.

They also described Haelin as having no visible soft tissue or bone injuries — but found significant bleeding in her brain, optical nerve, retina and spinal cord during her autopsy, Neufeld said.

She told the judge Haelin's injuries pointed to consistent violent shaking of the baby, and medical experts couldn't describe another reason for the injuries during the autopsy.

"Mr. Mecas was alone with Haelin when she became unresponsive," Neufeld said.

The only reasonable conclusion was Mecas hurt her, even if it was not intentional, making him guilty of manslaughter, Neufeld argued.

"There are some things that we don't know about what happened in this case, things that we can't know," she said.

'Best that the Crown can do is speculate': defence

While Haelin's mother, Kara Taylor, 35, and Kara's cousin Crystal Taylor, 39, gave inconsistent testimony on smaller details, they were consistent where it matters, Neufeld said.

Both testified Haelin had been healthy when she was left alone with Mecas, and she was in medical distress when they returned. They also testified that Mecas had confessed in 2022 to hurting Haelin.

In interrogations with police, Mecas confirmed he had been alone with Haelin before her medical distress, Neufeld also said.

Defence lawyer Andrew Synyshyn said in his closing arguments that Mecas also repeatedly told police he didn't hurt his daughter.

While medical experts testified Hailin's injuries were likely from rapid acceleration and deceleration, they couldn't say what caused it — and that means her injuries could have come from an accidental movement or unintentional action, Synyshyn argued.

"The best that the Crown can do is speculate that maybe the baby was shaken," Synyshyn told the judge. "They can't say again without any degree of certainty what exactly caused the injuries."

In the end, there are more questions than answers about what happened to Haelin, Synyshyn said. 

"There is medical evidence that some trauma has occurred," he said. "What? We don't know."

The seven-year-long investigation failed to yield any new information, aside from Kara's and Crystal's testimony, Synyshyn said as he ended his closing statement.

"This was a tragedy in the community. So how far have we come and what have we learned in the nine years about what happened?" Synyshyn asked.

"We know nothing more than we did in about January or July 2016."

Abel said he will release his decision in June.