Bail for woman convicted of killing disabled daughter
Cindy Ali, who was found guilty of firstdegree murder in the 2011 death of her disabled daughter, has been freed amid the pandemic, pending an appeal that contends her trial judge erred in his instructions to the jury and unfairly presented a key witness’s testimony.
The appeal, prepared by lawyers James Lockyer and Catriona Verner, calls Ali’s conviction a “miscarriage of justice” and seeks a new trial.
Ali, accompanied by family, walked out of Grand Valley Institution for Women on April 20 after the Crown consented to her release on bail.
Grand Valley has had eight inmates test positive for COVID-19 and at least one inmate had to be hospitalized. All have recovered, according to the latest Correctional Service Canada data.
Ali, who has underlying health issues that make her vulnerable to the virus, has no other criminal history.
Married, with three other daughters, Ali returned to her family in Toronto for the first time since her March 6, 2016, first-degree murder conviction, which came with an automatic life sentence and no chance of parole for 25 years.
Her daughter, Cynara Ali, 16, had cerebral palsy, was prone to seizures and was dependent on her family for care.
At her trial, Ali, who was home alone with her on Feb.11, 2011, testified that two male intruders barged into the family home that day looking for a package, and that her daughter suffered a seizure.
Ali dialed 911 to report a home invasion and that Cynara had stopped breathing. She later died in hospital.
Ali was initially charged with manslaughter, failing to provide the necessities of life, obstruction and negligence causing death, but the charge was later raised to first-degree murder.
In a factum filed May1with the Ontario Court of Appeal, Lockyer and Verner contend that trial judge Justice Todd Ducharme “unfairly presented” the testimony of a witness who saw two men near the home before the 911 call, and that Ducharme undermined the trial in his instructions to the jury on Ali’s “post offence conduct” and whether the crime scene had been “staged.”
The Crown argued the home invasion was made up and that Ali murdered her daughter by smothering her with a pillow, in part for financial reasons. The Crown also argued a letter from the home invaders that arrived several weeks after Cynara’s death was made up.
The handwritten letter, addressed to the Ali family, said the invaders had gone to the wrong address in search of a package.
The appeal argues that descriptions of the home invaders given by both Ali and the witness were “strikingly similar,” but the judge “minimized” the weight of that testimony.
The jury was presented with a choice between a not-guilty verdict if they believed there had been a home invasion, or a first-degree murder conviction if they did not.
In the appeal, Lockyer and Verner argue the “jury was improperly instructed on how to proceed if they found the home invasion was made up.
“Whether there was a home invasion thereby became the fulcrum for a firstdegree murder conviction,” they said.
The appeal further argues that there is no evidence to support a deliberate, planned murder, and that the judge erred in his instructions on motive.
Ali was released on bail by consent of the Crown, meaning her release was not contested.
“It’s a tremendous relief that she’s on bail, especially because there was a COVID outbreak,” Lockyer said in a phone interview.
He added he expects the appeal to be heard before the end of the year.