A Victoria woman intends to plead guilty to the second-degree murder of her toddler seven years ago, B.C. Supreme Court heard Monday.
The surprise plea indication came at the beginning of what was expected to be a new trial for Kaela Janine Mehl, who was convicted in October 2017 of first-degree murder in the death of her 18-month-old daughter in September 2015.
Mehl was sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years. She appealed her conviction and in July 2021, the B.C. Court of Appeal ordered a new trial.
She has been on bail since then after being in prison for about four years.
Crown lawyer Clare Jennings said news of Mehl’s intentions came after a new indictment for second-degree murder was filed. Mehl is due back in court for a brief appearance next week, when a date in January for sentencing is expected to be scheduled.
The issue at sentencing will be how much time Mehl must serve before she is eligible for parole.
First-degree murder — a homicide that is planned and deliberate — carries an automatic life sentence with no possibility of parole for 25 years.
The minimum sentence for second-degree murder — generally a deliberate killing that occurs without planning — is life in prison with no parole for 10 years, but sentences can be as long as life in prison without parole for 25 years.
During the first trial, Mehl admitted she killed her daughter, Charlotte, in the early morning of Sept. 16, 2015 by feeding her yogurt laced with a fatal dose of Zopiclone, then smothering her.
The jury heard that Mehl and husband, Daniel Cunningham, had become embroiled in an ugly, tumultuous custody battle for their child after separating in May 2015. Their exchanges of the toddler took place at the Saanich police station.
Supporters from both sides were in court Monday.
The Crown’s theory was that Mehl was suddenly faced with the reality that she would have to share custody of her daughter with Cunningham and his family, whom she disliked, and she killed Charlotte to prevent them having access to the little girl.
Mehl hired private investigators, surreptitiously recorded exchanges and followed the family to find evidence that the child wasn’t safe with them. At the same time, the courts were increasing the family’s access to the child.
On Sept. 15, 2015, losing hope in the custody battle for the child, Mehl decided to kill herself and her daughter because she did not want to leave the child behind to be raised by her ex-husband’s family.
Mehl began researching fatal doses of Zopiclone and started writing a suicide note. She fed the drugs to the child and smothered her. Then Mehl took what she believed was a fatal dose of the sleeping pills and finished writing her suicide note, which she emailed to the family of her ex-husband and the family lawyer.
The appeal court ordered a new trial after finding that Mehl’s lawyer failed to provide professional assistance, and that the behaviour of a juror who made sympathetic hand gestures toward the baby’s father and his family undermined trial fairness.
— With a file from Jeff Bell
