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Twelve-year-old Karissa Boudreau was reported missing from Bridgewater on January 27, 2008. Her body was found on the bank of the LaHave River two weeks later. Following a four-month investigation, police charged the girl's mother, 34-year-old Penny Boudreau, with first-degree murder.

On January 30, 2009, Boudreau pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 20 years. Investigators learned she strangled her daughter because she believed the child was in the way of her relationship with her boyfriend.

'Mummy, don't': Woman kills her only daughter, 12, after boyfriend says, 'It's the child or me'

DailyMail.co.uk

February 2, 2009

A mother murdered her only child after being told by her boyfriend: 'It's her or me.'

Penny Boudreau strangled 12-year-old daughter Karissa after Vernon MacCumber threatened to end their affair because he did not get on with the girl.

Boudreau drove her daughter to a deserted wooded area, knocked her to the ground and strangled her, a Canadian court heard.

The heartless mother ignored her terrified daughter's cries of 'Mummy, don't!' as she pinned her down and wrapped a rope around her neck, prosecutor Paul Scovi said.

She then drove to a nearby river and pulled her daughter's trousers partly off to make it look as if she was the victim of a sex attack, before rolling her into the water.

Boudreau later claimed her daughter had gone missing after they had an argument and made TV appeals for her return. Two weeks later Karissa's body was found on the banks of the river.

Boudreau was caught by undercover officers posing as gangsters offering to destroy any evidence police had against her. She was charged with murder in June last year.

Boudreau broke down in tears in the courtroom in Bridgewater, Nova Scotia, as she pleaded guilty to murder and said: 'I'm sorry.'

Boudreau pleaded guilty to second degree murder and was jailed for 20 years without parole.

Relatives wept openly in the courtroom as Karissa's final hours were revealed by prosecutors.

The court heard that the single mother moved in with her boyfriend Vernon MacCumber.

MacCumber did not get on with the 12-year-old Karissa, and issued an  ultimatum that either she went or he would end the relationship.

Bourdeau chose to sacrifice her daughter's life.

On returning home she threw away some of Karissa's clothes to make it look like she had run away. She also called her boyfriend to tell him her daughter had gone missing.

It is unclear if MacCumber knew what she had done. The pair attended Karissa's funeral together.

Police always suspected Boudreau but had no evidence to charge her after  Karissa's body was found in February 2008.

Undercover investigators only learned the grisly details of the murder after a sting operation in which officers posed as organised crime bosses who convinced Boudreau they could destroy whatever evidence the police might have against  her.

Boudreau took the bait and began talking. She was charged with murder in June  2008.

The judge Justice Margaret Stewart, looking directly at  Boudreau, told her: 'You can never call yourself mother.

'The words, "Mummy, don't," are there to haunt you for the rest of your life'.

N.S. woman admits she strangled daughter to keep boyfriend

'Mommy, don't': girl's last words revealed as Penny Boudreau sentenced

CBC.ca

January 30, 2009

A woman from Bridgewater, N.S., has been handed a life sentence with no parole eligibility for 20 years for strangling her only child after her boyfriend gave her an ultimatum.

Penny Boudreau, 34, pleaded guilty Friday to second-degree murder in the death of 12-year-old Karissa Boudreau.

The girl's frozen body was found on the outskirts of Bridgewater on Feb. 9, 2008, about two weeks after her mother reported her missing.

Boudreau, wearing a black T-shirt and jeans, told the court, "I'm sorry."

When asked about the apology, Paul Boudreau, Karissa's father, said bluntly: "Crocodile tears."

"Justice has been served," he added.

Justice Margaret Stewart, who handed down the sentence at the Nova Scotia Supreme Court in Bridgewater, said the horrible crime merited a harsh sentence.

"You can never call yourself mother in conjunction with Karissa's name again," Stewart said.

Karissa's relatives sobbed loudly as Crown attorney Paul Scovil read out the grim details of the girl's final moments in an agreed statement of facts.

The court heard that Boudreau's boyfriend, Vernon Macumber, told her she had to choose between him and her daughter if she wanted to save their relationship.

Carried body to river

It was dark and snowy on Jan. 27, 2008, when Boudreau drove the girl to a remote spot on William Hebb Road in Hebbville, near Bridgewater.

They got out of the car and argued. Boudreau tackled her daughter, knelt on her chest and strangled her with a length of twine.

Boudreau could feel the girl's hands digging into the ground as she struggled.

Karissa's last words were, "Mommy, don't."

Boudreau then put the body in the car and threw away the twine in a coffee cup.

She drove to a spot along the LaHave River, and as she dragged the body, pulled down Karissa's pants to give the impression the girl had been sexually assaulted. She then rolled the body down an embankment.

Boudreau later tossed several pieces of Karissa's clothing in the garbage can at the local swimming pool.

When she got home, she told police her daughter had run away. She also called friends and teachers to spread the story.

Stewart had harsh words for Boudreau.

"The words, 'Mommy, don't' from a trusting and loving Karissa are there to haunt you for the rest of your life," she said.

Paul Boudreau is still trying to comprehend what happened. Karissa was living with him at one point but moved to Bridgewater to be with her mother.

"I can't call it anything other than a senseless act," said Boudreau, adding his ex-girlfriend had options.

"Had I known this was going to happen, I would have never let her go back. But what parent is going to say, 'No, you can't go back and see your mother,'" he said.

Penny Boudreau was charged with first-degree murder in June 2008. At the time, police said they believed Karissa knew her killer.

Scovil said Boudreau had two motives: to save her faltering relationship with Macumber and keep Karissa from publicly calling her a bad mother.

He said he agreed to the lesser charge of second-degree murder to give the family some closure and avoid the uncertainty of a trial.

Murder carries an automatic life sentence. Both the Crown and defence recommended parole eligibility after 20 years.

"All in all, it was the right thing to do," Scovil said.

As for Macumber, Scovil said there was no evidence he wanted his girlfriend to kill her daughter. He said Boudreau made it clear that she was solely responsible.

"We suspected very strongly that he must have had an idea. But there was no evidence to suggest that he either had concrete evidence or assisted in any way," Scovil said.

Undercover police investigation

The grim truth of what happened to the girl came out as a result of an undercover police investigation.

Boudreau gave the details to officers posing as organized crime bosses, who said they could help her destroy evidence held by police.

Karissa's story has gripped the small Nova Scotia community ever since her mother made a tearful plea at a news conference for her daughter's safe return.

Boudreau said they had had a fight in the parking lot of a grocery store, and when she came back to the car, Karissa was gone.

Several searches of the area turned up no sign of the young girl.

Two weeks later, a passerby discovered Karissa's frozen body on the bank of the LaHave River.

Paul Boudreau said he had suspicions about his ex-girlfriend from the moment Karissa was reported missing.

"Any parent knows their child, and when a child does something way out of character, you know from Day 1 it's not true," he said.

Rumours had been circulating around Bridgewater, too.

Wendy Rhodenizer, a resident who helped organized this week's candlelight vigil, said the town is going to have an even tougher time healing now that the details of Karissa's death are out.

"We'd heard some really vicious rumours at the beginning, and we didn't know what to believe," she said. "I will say one thing, I'm extremely impressed with the investigators in this."

Senior officers with the RCMP and local police say hardened investigators were reduced to tears during their long undercover inquiry.

Though Penny Boudreau was sentenced to life with no eligibility for parole for 20 years, she can apply for early parole after 15 years under what is known as the faint-hope clause of the Criminal Code.

The case to date

• January 27. Penny Boudreau notifies Bridgewater Police at 7:30 p.m. that her 12-year-old daughter, Karissa, is missing. She tells officers she left the girl in the car outside the Bridgewater Mall Sobeys store following an argument and when she returned Karissa was gone. Police and family members begin looking for the child believing she has run away from home.

• January 28. Bridgewater Police contact other police agencies and alert the media as they extend the search for the missing 12 year old.

• January 29. Penny Boudreau makes a tearful plea to her daughter to come home at a press conference at the Bridgewater Police station. She explains that she took Karissa for a drive on Sunday “to have a heart-to-heart” with her. They argued over “typical teenage things” that really weren’t significant.

• January 30. Reports that Karissa is missing continue to spread as the 12 year old’s photo is plastered in stores and businesses around Bridgewater and beyond.

• February 1. Penny Boudreau makes a second emotional appeal to her daughter or anybody who knows where she is to make contact. “It’s hard not to know where your kid is,” she tells reporters. Police admit they have no evidence to confirm that Karissa was in the Sobeys lot on Sunday because there are no surveillance videos of the area.

• February 6. A week of searching on the ground and from the air turns up no sign of Karissa. After two days in the LaHave, RCMP divers say they are confident that the missing girl is not in the river.

• February 9. A passerby discovers Karissa’s frozen body on the bank of the LaHave River below Highway 331 just outside Bridgewater town limits in Conquerall Bank at 11:30 a.m. Forensic investigators descend on the scene.

• February 14. The RCMP and Bridgewater Police call a news conference to confirm that the body found on the riverbank was Karissa and that the missing person case has become a homicide investigation.

• February 15. Two Bridgewater residents known to Karissa are released after being held for 24 hours for questioning. Police won’t confirm their identities, but continue to say they are confident the murder was not random and Karissa knew her killer.

• February 17. Police warn the murder investigation could take days, weeks or months to complete. “For us to do a proper job, we’re going to take the time we need to take,” Sgt. John Collyer, Bridgewater’s acting deputy chief, says.

• February 18. Bridgewater Police Chief Brent Crowhurst urges the community to feel safe, asking residents to trust investigators when they say Karissa’s murder is an isolated incident. He assures townspeople that more than 20 investigators from his force and the RCMP are working on the case and have the combined training and experience to resolve it.

• February 19. Hundreds of people attend a funeral service for the slain 12 year old in Shelburne County, where she previously lived and her father and grandparents still reside. She’s buried in a cemetery in Clarks Harbour.

• February 23. Bridgewater mourns Karissa at a memorial service organized by nine churches. She has become “Bridgewater’s daughter.”

• June 14. After four months of assurances that they are making progress in the case but can’t release details of the investigation, police announce they arrested Penny Boudreau the previous evening and have charged her with first-degree murder. Chief Brent Crowhurst says, “Investigators feel confident that there was only one person responsible for this homicide. We do not expect anyone else to be charged in this case.”

• June 16. Penny Boudreau is arraigned on a single count of first-degree murder. Crowds jeer and yell profanities as she is escorted from the Bridgewater courthouse in handcuffs. Crown attorney Paul Scovil won’t say how Karissa died, but confirms that the charge indicates the crime was planned and deliberate. Court documents reveal that police believe she was killed in Bridgewater on January 27, the same day her mother reported her missing.

• June 24. Concerned residents are disappointed when they show up for Penny Boudreau’s second court appearance and she does not. A Halifax defence lawyer appears on her behalf and has the case bumped to July 15 so documents can continue changing hands.

• July 15. Defence lawyer Pat Atherton appears in Bridgewater provincial court on Penny Boudreau’s behalf again. Disclosure of the Crown’s evidence is ongoing and the case is adjourned until September 3.

• September 3. The case is adjourned again without Penny Boudreau’s attendance. She remains in custody in the Burnside correctional centre.

• October 22. Penny Boudreau doesn’t appear for her latest court date, but defence lawyer Pat Atherton waives his client’s right to a preliminary hearing, which moves the case to the Supreme Court. Mr. Atherton continues to refuse to comment on the case, but Crown attorney Paul Scovil speculates that the move may mean the defence is satisfied the Crown could meet the minimal test at the preliminary hearing level. The case is scheduled for December 3 to set a trial date.

•  December 4. The accused mom makes her second appearance in a Bridgewater courtroom, this time for arraignment in the Supreme Court. She rocks back and forth, periodically wiping tears from her face, as lawyers discuss dates for future court appearances. Crown and defence are still talking. Penny Boudreau is scheduled to return to court on January 30.

• January 27, 2009.  About 200 people attend a candlelight memorial at Shipyards Landing marking the one-year anniversary of Karissa’s reported disappearance and death.

• January 30, 2009.  Penny Boudreau pleads guilty to second-degree murder and is sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 20 years. The court hears that she killed Karissa because the child was in the way of her relationship with her boyfriend.

Southshorenow.ca

Mom charged with murder in Karissa Boudreau case

CTV.ca

June 14, 2008

At Karissa's funeral, Rev. Perry Ingersoll had praised her friendly personality, "winning smile" and love for animals. Her teachers and friends described Karissa as a typical youngster who liked to sing and listen to pop music.

Missing girl was murdered

Police continue probe into Karissa Boudreau's death

By Lisa Brown - Southshorenow.ca

February 19, 2008

"Obviously the investigators, for whatever reason, believed that these individuals may or may not have had some information that was important to this case and they wanted to speak to them," Sgt. Collyer said.

By law, police can only hold a suspect for 24 hours without laying charges. That does not mean the suspect cannot be arrested again at a later date.

A third person, described as a "person of interest" in the case, was questioned Thursday and released the same day.

There has been wide-scale speculation about the identity of the two people who were arrested and released, but police refuse to name them. Authorities have only said they are Bridgewater residents who knew Karissa.

Sgt. Collyer would not confirm if police had questioned the pair further over the weekend.

"I really can't comment on that. That would be tipping the hand of the investigators," he said.

He did, however, verify that to his knowledge officers working the case have no other suspects.

"The two suspects remain suspects," he said.

Police have also executed several search warrants connected to the case, but have refused to release any details. There have been reports that at least one was at Jubilee Apartments, where Karissa lived with her mother, Penny Boudreau, and her mother's boyfriend, Vernon MacCumber. Neighbours have also said that police removed Ms Boudreau's car, a red Neon, and possibly a second blue car.

Investigators had the assistance of a criminal profiler late last week, an RCMP officer who was on vacation in Nova Scotia and volunteered his services.

"He reviewed our investigation and felt we were on the right track," Sgt. Collyer said.

The Nova Scotia medical examiner's office released Karissa's body to her father, Paul Boudreau, on Saturday. A memorial service is planned for Tuesday at 2 p.m. in Barrington, southwest of Shelburne, where he resides. Karissa lived with her father last summer and until mid-November when she chose to move to Bridgewater to be with her mother.

On January 27, Ms Boudreau reported that her daughter was missing. She told police she'd last seen Karissa at 5:30 p.m. when, following an argument, the girl chose to remain in the car while her mother went into the Sobeys in the Bridgewater Mall to buy a few items. When she returned 15 minutes later, Ms Boudreau said her daughter was gone. She said she drove around looking for Karissa before calling police at 8:30 p.m.

That sparked a large-scale search for the 12 year old, which included ground search and rescue volunteers, a Department of Natural Resources helicopter, RCMP divers, Child Find, internet groups and countless citizens who put up posters in the town, the county and beyond.

The search seemed to end February 9 when police confirmed they'd found the body of a young, white female and people waited to learn if it was the missing girl.

From the time they first announced that Karissa was murdered, police have downplayed the need for increased caution in the community.

"The investigators feel this is an isolated incident and I would suggest that Bridgewater is a pretty safe community most of the time," Sgt. Collyer said at last week's press conference.

Mayor Carroll Publicover said he was shocked to learn that Karissa had been murdered.

"I grieve for that little girl and I grieve for all those affected by her loss, that includes her classmates and her friends. It's a shocking state of affairs that we have a young girl 12 years old who is a victim of homicide. That's a very disquieting reality for the whole community," he said.

The mayor added he understands that people are upset and concerned for the safety of their children. However, he wants to assure residents that investigators are doing their best to solve Karissa's murder and he believes they will solve it.

"They've deployed every possible resource they can to deal with this matter effectively and will continue to do so," Mayor Publicover said.

Bridgewater's last murder occurred in 1992 when musician Joseph Laurendeau, 41, was stabbed to death. Charles Zwicker was charged with murder, but later pleaded guilty to manslaughter.

From missing to murdered

• January 27. Karissa Boudreau is reported missing at 8:30 p.m. Her mother, Penny Boudreau, tells police her 12-year-old daughter waited in the car outside the Bridgewater Mall Sobeys store following an argument while she went inside to buy a few items. When she returned about 15 minutes later, she says Karissa was gone. Police and family members begin looking for the child believing she has run away from home. As a winter storm hits the South Shore, a search dog fails to turn up any sign of Karissa in the Sobeys parking lot.

• January 28. Bridgewater Police contact other police agencies and alert the media as they extend the search for the missing 12 year old.

• January 29. Penny Boudreau makes a tearful plea to her daughter to come home at a press conference at the Bridgewater Police station. She explains that she took Karissa for a drive on Sunday "to have a heart-to-heart" with her. They argued over "typical teenage things" that really weren't significant. Lunenburg County Ground Search and Rescue volunteers comb an area along the William Hebb Road in Hebbville after receiving a tip. They find no sign of Karissa.

• January 30. Reports that Karissa is missing continue to spread as the 12 year old's photo is plastered in stores and businesses around Bridgewater and beyond.

• January 31. Skies finally clear and two police officers scour the LaHave River, the Bridgewater Mall, wooded areas around Bridgewater and east and west along Highway 103 from a Department of Natural Resources helicopter. They see no evidence of Karissa.

• February 1. Penny Boudreau makes a second emotional appeal to her daughter or anybody who knows where she is to make contact. "It's hard not to know where your kid is," she tells reporters. Police admit they have no evidence to confirm that Karissa was in the Sobeys lot on Sunday because there are no surveillance videos of the area, but say the family has been co-operative. "We do not have any evidence to point to anything that is criminal," Sgt. John Collyer says.

• February 4. Police conduct a second air search from a helicopter going back over the same areas with the same negative results.

• February 5. RCMP divers begin probing the icy LaHave River searching for Karissa behind the Bridgewater Mall as far downstream as Shipyards Landing.

• February 6. Divers complete their search and police say they are confident that the missing girl is not in the river.

• February 7. Police continue to run down leads in the case, including tips of possible sightings of Karissa from around the Maritimes, but can't find her.

• February 9. A passerby discovers a body on the bank of the LaHave River below Highway 331 just outside Bridgewater town limits in Conquerall Bank at 11:30 a.m. Forensic investigators descend on the scene, while police notify Karissa's family that human remains have been found.

• February 10. Police confirm that the body is a young white female, but say no positive identification will be made until an autopsy on February 13. Dozens of people attend a prayer vigil for Karissa at the Sobeys parking lot.

• February 14. The RCMP and Bridgewater Police hold a press conference to confirm that the body found on the riverbank was Karissa and that the missing person case has become a homicide investigation. Three people are questioned in connection with the girl's death and one is released. Police execute several search warrants in the Bridgewater area, but won't reveal details.

• February 15. The two Bridgewater residents arrested for questioning in the murder investigation are released without being charged.

• February 16. The Nova Scotia medical examiner's office releases Karissa's body to her father, Paul Boudreau. A memorial service is planned for February 19 at 2 p.m. in Barrington, southwest of Shelburne where he lives.

• February 17. Police warn the murder investigation could take days, weeks or months to complete. "For us to do a proper job, we're going to take the time we need to take," Sgt. John Collyer, Bridgewater's acting deputy chief, says.

• February 18. Bridgewater Police Chief Brent Crowhurst urges the community to feel safe, asking residents to trust investigators when they say Karissa's murder is an isolated incident. He assures townspeople that more than 20 investigators from his force and the RCMP are working on the case and have the combined training and experience to resolve it. "From our investigation, we are satisfied there is no jeopardy for residents of Bridgewater and surrounding areas. We don't believe for a minute that it was a random act that could happen again," the chief says.

No sign of missing girl

Police and family baffled by 12 year old's disappearance

"Karissa, we just want you to come home, honey. Just come home," he said.

Ms Boudreau explained the argument she'd had with her daughter was neither unusual nor important.

"It wasn't like a big argument," she said. "I took her for a drive that day just to try to have a heart-to-heart with her. In a car she can't get away and slam her door like she usually does to me. I just wanted to try to reach out to her as a mom and set some things straight as far as typical teenage things."

Ms Boudreau said Karissa didn't like what she had to say and, as usual, didn't want to go in the grocery store with her. She said her daughter wasn't happy living in the family's current apartment and hasn't made a lot of friends since moving to Bridgewater.

Karissa's parents live apart. She has been a student at Bridgewater Elementary School since mid-November. Prior to that, she attended Hillcrest Academy in Shelburne for two and a half months while living with her father. Last year, she was a student in Hebbville.

Sgt. Collyer said police are particularly concerned because of Karissa's attire at the time of her disappearance. She was wearing a black hoodie, black vest and blue jeans with pink Crocs on her feet.

"What's most disturbing to us is that she was dressed inappropriately for the weather," Sgt. Collyer said. "Here on the South Shore we had a snowstorm that night. Weather conditions were inclement at best."

Police have received no reports of any suspicious or unusual activity in the parking lot around the time Karissa disappeared. Investigators have reviewed surveillance tapes from businesses around the Bridgewater Mall. They've determined that Karissa's mother was in Sobeys as reported, but there are no surveillance cameras on the parking lot so they cannot confirm that the girl was there or what direction she might have taken if she left.

They called Lunenburg County Ground Search and Rescue to an area on the William Hebb Road in Hebbville after receiving a tip Tuesday evening. Volunteers combed the area for four hours, but turned up nothing.

An RCMP diver studied the LaHave River behind the mall early last week, but determined it was doubtful that Karissa went into the water.

"From our point of view, it's not likely she went into the river. However, we can't completely rule it out," Sgt. Collyer said. "We're about 90 per cent certain she's not there, but again there's always that other factor."

When the skies finally cleared on January 31, two police officers spent three hours in a Department of Natural Resources helicopter scouring the area around the Bridgewater Mall, woods surrounding Bridgewater and more than 60 kilometres along Highway 103. Sgt. Collyer said they took another close look at the river behind the mall and the William Hebb Road, but saw nothing.

Investigators have also spoken with Karissa's friends here and in Shelburne. They're monitoring her MSN account and Facebook, but haven't found any clues to her disappearance. They know she had only a few dollars, no wallet and no cellphone.

Meanwhile, missing persons posters have been plastered around Bridgewater and stretched across the province. Child Find Nova Scotia is assisting and more than 13,000 people have joined six Facebook groups to spread the word about the girl's disappearance on the internet and offer support to her family.

Bridgewater Police called a second press conference Friday where it was clear that Ms Boudreau still believes Karissa is in hiding.

"Please, just reach out to someone. At least call us and let me know you're okay," the crying mother said. "The main thing is I just want somebody to come forward, if not Karissa herself, somebody let me know. It's hard to not know where your kid is."

While her family describes Karissa as a loner who likes to spend a lot of time in her room, they say she's otherwise a typical 12-year-old girl. She likes singing and dancing to her favourite music, playing video games and watching television.

Sgt. Collyer said officers are continuing to pursue all possible avenues in the case, but admitted they, too, are mystified by Karissa's disappearance. They continue to follow tips from the public, some now from other provinces.

"We've had some sightings. We have not been able to conclusively say that it was her," he said.

Investigators are also probing the possibility of foul play, including interviewing family members and trying to determine when Karissa was last seen by someone outside the immediate family.

"This has been a criminal investigation almost from Day 1. That would be standard operating procedure for any police agency where the circumstances are a mystery," Sgt. Collyer said.

"We do not have any evidence to point to anything that is criminal at this point and, believe me, we've explored that, but we'll continue to explore down that road. The family has been very co-operative with us in anything we've asked and we have no reason to believe, at this point, that there's any reason to disbelieve what mom has told us," he said.

Police are also considering a report of an attempted abduction in Liverpool two weeks before Karissa's disappearance, but have nothing to connect the two events.

"Our investigators are aware of it. It is obviously something that they would look at, but in the absence of any information such as somebody coming forward and somebody having sighted a vehicle of that type here, it's difficult for us to make any kind of link between the two incidents," Sgt. Collyer said.

"At this point, … we don't know that this is an abduction. We don't know if this is Karissa running away. We just don't know. That is the problem," he added.

The investigation into Karissa's disappearance is continuing and police are asking anyone who may have any information to come forward. She is described as five feet tall and 130 pounds, with shoulder-length brown hair.

If anyone knows Karissa Boudreau's whereabouts, they are asked to call the Bridgewater Police at 543-2464.