Sask. dad who killed toddler sentenced to 16 years; police inaction criticized

PRINCE ALBERT, Sask. — A judge has sentenced a Saskatchewan man to 16 years for manslaughter in the beating death of his 13-month-old son.

Court heard Monday that Kaij Brass of Prince Albert, Sask., hit his child repeatedly, resulting in the toddler’s death, hours after police showed up for a domestic call involving the boy’s parents in 2022.

The father was given about three year’s credit for the time he spent in pretrial custody.

Two officers who showed up at the family’s home in the hours before the killing were found to have neglected their duty in not checking on the child, Tanner Brass.

Court heard Kaij Brass kicked the boy’s mother, Kyla Frenchman, out of their home after a fight, causing the toddler to cry.

“His response was a natural one. As a young child, he became upset,” prosecutor Rob Parker told court.

“Rather than comfort or console, which it appears Mr. Brass says he began to do, he did not see that through to completion and instead became violent with his son.”

A report from the Public Complaints Commission last year said Frenchman had called 911 earlier in the day to say Brass was intoxicated and had assaulted her.

The two officers spoke with Frenchman outside the home, but she didn’t want to pursue an assault investigation.

The report says the officers did not enter the house or attempt to check on Tanner, deciding it was best for the child to stay there with his father. They then took Frenchman to the police station so she could have somewhere warm to sleep, as all the women’s shelters were full.

Five hours later, Brass called 911 and said he had killed his baby.

Court heard the father was frustrated with Frenchman and took it out on Tanner, but Brass did not intend to kill the boy.

Reading from the agreed statement of facts, Parker said Brass began to spank his son then repeatedly hit him on the chest and the head.

Brass went to bed, after noticing the toddler was breathing heavily and bleeding from the mouth.

When the father woke up, Tanner was dead.

Brass told the judge he’s sorry for what he did.

“I want to accept responsibility for what I’ve done,” he told court.

Parker said he reached out to Frenchman’s lawyers, and they were aware of the court proceeding. But he did not receive a victim impact statement from her.

LIAM RICHARDS, THE CANADIAN PRESS Kyla Frenchman, mother of Tanner Brass, at an event organized by The Federation of Sovereign Indigenous Nations last March. Tanner’s father, Kaij Brass, was sentenced to 16 years for manslaughter in the death of 13-month-old Tanner.