Three days have been set aside for a sentencing hearing for a foster mother who admitted to abusing a child in her care.
Susan MacDonnell of Dartmouth, N.S. pleaded guilty last month to aggravated assault and failing to provide the necessities of life.
MacDonnell was charged after a toddler in her care was treated at the IWK Health Centre in Halifax for malnourishment in 2010.
MacDonnell has fostered nearly 30 children over 13 years and has no previous record. The judge in the case said last month that he has never felt as challenged as he does with this case.
As a result, he asked for a psychiatric assessment to be completed before making a decision about MacDonnell's sentence.
The Crown plans to introduce evidence about MacDonnell's character that shows she has stolen and also lied to the Department of Community Services.
"Ms. MacDonnell had stolen money from a foster parent association group and when confronted about stealing it, she essentially lied to the Department of Community Services and said that she had cancer, her father had cancer, and something else of that nature," alleges Crown attorney Catherine Cogswell. "And it turned out to be false…that she just used the extra money for some extra household expenses; that she had made that story up."
The Crown says the theft was never reported to police and no charges were laid.
The sentencing hearing for MacDonnell will he held in September.
