Defence asks for no jail time in rare and ‘tragic’ infanticide case in P.E.I.

WARNING: This story contains disturbing details of physical and sexual abuse and self-harm. Resources and supports can be found at the bottom of this story.

The lawyer for a woman who admitted to killing her infant daughter in Charlottetown last year while suffering from postpartum depression asked that his client receive no jail time for the crime — details of which have been unveiled in court for the first time. 

Cassie Marie Acorn, 40, was originally charged with first-degree murder in the death of her three-month old daughter, however, after a psychiatrist determined Acorn had a “disturbance of the mind” at the time of her child’s death, she was able to plead guilty to infanticide instead.

During a hearing on Tuesday, Crown attorney John Diamond asked the judge to sentence Acorn to one year in jail, followed by two years of probation and mandatory counselling.

Acorn’s lawyer said that was not unreasonable, but he instead argued that Acorn should avoid jail time altogether through either a long period of probation or serving a sentence on house arrest. 

“I think this is a tragic case,” legal aid director Thane MacEachern told the court, adding that it’s one that has had a profound impact on Acorn, her deceased daughter and the community at large.

The court heard that a psychiatrist’s report concluded that Acorn’s now deceased infant, Winter Elizabeth Rose Acorn, was conceived as a result of a sexual assault. 

Despite the manner of conception, Acorn wanted her child to be born, even after her medical team advised her to terminate the pregnancy after abnormal prenatal scans.

The psychiatrist wrote there was no evidence Winter was resented by Acorn, who was excited about having a daughter.

“Cassie was a vulnerable woman…. She was provided surgical intervention preventing further pregnancies, and she appeared to desire the chance to fully experience motherhood with her last child. She seemed to derive a sense of purpose and identity through her role as a mother,” Dr. Hygiea Casiano wrote.

“She was likely eager to prove others wrong and demonstrate that she was capable of parenting well.”

A psychologist also concluded Acorn had an intellectual disability in the “mild range” and test results showed the possibility of post-traumatic stress disorder, a persistent depressive disorder and at least four other conditions or disorders. 

The report said Acorn had also been a victim of abuse at the hands of a former partner. 

The psychiatrist’s report said that despite her desire to be a good mother, Acorn found herself as a single parent of two for the first time in December 2024 when both of her children were in her custody, and she was overloaded.