Two Ontario women have been found guilty of killing a boy they were trying to adopt and confining his brother.
Gasps could be heard in the Milton, Ont., courtroom as Ontario Superior Court Justice Clayton Conlan found Becky Hamber and Brandy Cooney guilty on all counts they faced.
The judge did not read out the reasons for his decision during the brief hearing Tuesday morning.
The women were charged with first-degree murder in the death of a 12-year-old boy. The pair were also charged with multiple offences, including forcible confinement, related to the boy's younger brother.
At the time of the arrests, police said the women were the boys' prospective adoptive parents.
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Investigators said the 12-year-old was found dead in a home in December 2022 after emergency crews were called for a child without vital signs.
Outside court after the ruling, Crown attorney Monica MacKenzie said she hopes the verdict will bring "some measure of accountability" even though no outcome could repair the harm caused by the women's actions.
"This was an exceptionally tragic case with a profound impact on many people. A child's life was taken and another child suffered significant abuse over a number of years," she said, reading from a prepared statement.
"Nothing that was done here today or during the trial could lessen the depth of that loss" for the boys' family and their communities, she said.
Monte MacGregor, who represents Hamber, said his client maintains her innocence and her love for both boys, as well as her commitment to their well-being.
The defence lawyer said he was a little surprised by the ruling in light of the evidence that the women had called the doctor the day before the boy's death and sought help from specialists, which he said "spoke of their true intentions."
"I believed at the very least we had achieved the objective of getting murder off the table, which requires intent and purpose to take another life. And His Honour disagreed with our position," he said outside court, adding they will be looking for possible avenues for appeal.
The underlying facts of the case are "tragic, if not horrific," MacGregor said.
“I think at the heart of it as well, aside from our client's guilt that was determined today, there was a wholesale systemic failure by the Children's Aid Society, by the doctors that were involved, and by the people that showed up when it was too late to do something for this young boy and his brother," he said.
"And I hope that that family can now move on and have some solace and some peace of mind, and I hope that the members of the institutions and the government that oversee these institutions take heed as to what happened here because it is an absolute tragedy that there wasn't more direct oversight, more involvement by those that are supposed to carry the responsibility of the protection of children."
In a statement emailed by her lawyer on Monday, the boys' mother described them as "amazing, funny and intelligent human beings with bigger than life personalities."
"I want people to understand that we are not just a case or a story. We are real people, a family who has lived through heartbreak. They are innocent children who deserved to be loved, to be protected and feel safe," she wrote.
Neither the children nor their mother can be identified under a publication ban.
A sentencing hearing will be held at a later date. First-degree murder carries an automatic sentence of life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published May 5, 2026.
