SASKATOON – Jessica Caron’s lifeless body was hidden away in a garage at Derek Caron’s home when he asked his 38-year-old girlfriend Crystal Laliberte to move in with him and his children, court heard.
A week before Jessica Caron’s body was found dumped in the snow on the outskirts of Saskatoon, her daughter had reported her as missing, saying she was last seen at her home at 521 Ave. S South at about 5:30 a.m. on Jan. 31.
Court heard that Derek Caron and Jessica Caron were still married when he had asked Laliberte to move into his marital home.
“He contacted her and advised her that Jessica had left in the middle of the night with her boyfriend,” Senior Crown Prosecutor Sheryl Fillo told Saskatoon Provincial Court on Nov. 1 during Laliberte’s sentencing hearing. Laliberte is also known as Crystal Lafond.
No one, however, had ever heard that Jessica Caron had a boyfriend. In addition, she left behind her vehicle, purse and cell phone, said Fillo.
Days later, on the night of Feb. 6 and early morning of Feb. 7, Derek Caron cried and told Laliberte that he had “messed up.” He took her into the garage and showed her Jessica Caron’s body, which was covered by a blanket, and asked Laliberte to help him dispose of the body, court heard.
Sitting in the prisoner’s box wearing a grey jail-issued sweater and sweat pants, Laliberte covered her face with her hands and quietly sobbed.
Court heard that the couple went for a drive and when they came back, Derek Caron backed a truck to the overhead garage door and Laliberte helped him load Jessica Caron’s body, which was on a sled, into the back of the truck. Laliberte said the body was very heavy and she wasn’t able to assist much. She was also frightened.
Derek Caron drove to a gravel road off of 11th Street on the outskirts of the city. He decided to turn the truck around even though Laliberte told him not to, saying they might get stuck. While trying to turn the truck around he got stuck in the snow.
Derek Caron then took the sled with Jessica Caron’s body and pulled it beside trees, dumped her body, and covered her with snow, court heard.
With the 2017 Chevrolet Silverado truck stuck in the snow, the couple walked to a nearby railway yard and asked an employee to call a tow truck. The employee escorted them out of the building and called the police, court heard.
Two taxi companies were called to pick up the couple and police obtained the audio recording of the person making the request for pick-up. The person said that the destination was 521 Ave. S. South and a man in the background told the dispatcher his name was Derek.
Video evidence from the taxi company obtained by police revealed that Derek Caron and Crystal Laliberte were taken from the railway yard to 521 Ave. S. South between 3:36 and 3:46 a.m.
Saskatoon police arrived at the scene at about 4:21 a.m. and found the truck still in the ditch. They ran the plate and it was registered to Jessica Caron, who had been reported as missing.
Police followed a set of footprints that led away from the vehicle and into nearby bushes where they discovered Jessica Caron’s body.
About three hours later, Saskatoon police went to Derek Caron’s home and arrested him and Laliberte.
Laliberte was identified by a railway employee in a police line-up.
“He didn’t tell (Laliberte) how Jessica died,” Fillo told the court. “He didn’t tell her how Jessica died or what happened at that time. She had nothing to do with her actual death.”
Kids left without a mom
Jessica Caron left behind nine children and four grandsons, her family said in victim impact statements that were read to the court by the Crown.
“Her kids don’t have a mom and her grandsons don’t have a grandma,” said Jessica’s mother Colleen.
“Jessica was my older sister who I looked up to,” said Ashley. “What has happened to my sister at the hands of these people is completely devastating to myself and my family and to her children it is heartbreaking. She loved her family and most of all her children.
“We are missing a part of our hearts that can never be replaced. We will never get to talk or see each other again, only to be left with pictures and videos of her voice.”
Jessica Caron will “be truly missed by a lot of people,” her cousin Selena said. “Jessica was a beautiful, fun, caring, loving person.”
Laliberte born in Pine Grove Correctional Centre
Defence lawyer Patrick McDougall told the court that Laliberte is a First Nations woman with significant Gladue factors.
“She was born in Pine Grove Correctional Centre,” he said, adding that she spent the first three months of her life in foster care while her mother was incarcerated.
Laliberte’s mother, who was present in court for the sentencing hearing, is confined to a wheel chair. Court heard that she attended Duck Lake Residential School from the age of six to 13, where she “suffered significant abuse."
Laliberte’s father also attended residential school. He was unable to be at the sentencing hearing because he is terminally ill. He refuses to talk about his time attending residential school and will only say that he went to an “all-boys school,” court heard.
Laliberte has three children, who were also in court for her sentencing hearing.
Laliberte has no gang affiliation or involvement and her criminal record consists of petty thefts driven by alcohol use, court heard.
“She has significant remorse,” said McDougall. “She has extreme sorrow for what took place.”
Judge Bruce Bauer accepted the joint sentencing submission and acknowledged Laliberte’s Gladue factors. He said colonialism caused significant negative effects on First Nations people, which has continued for decades and resulted in discrimination, racism, and lower educational opportunities. He said residential schools have caused the break-up of First Nations families, and difficulties in coping with what happened in them has resulted in a higher rate of alcohol and drug addiction for First Nations people.
Before sentencing, Judge Bauer asked Laliberte if she had anything to say.
Taking a crumpled piece of paper out of her bra, she opened it and looked around the gallery at her family and at Jessica Caron’s family. Tears streamed down her cheeks, she shook her head and said, “No, no I’m sorry.”
Judge Bauer told Laliberte that he noticed she appeared to have something written out on a piece of paper and asked her if she wanted someone else to read her statement to the court. She nodded yes.
Her defence lawyer read her statement.
“I can’t imagine the grief and pain this incident has caused all the family and friends of the life that was lost. I’m truly sorry from the bottom of my heart. I hope that everyone affected by this traumatic event can find forgiveness, not for my sake, but for the healing and comfort that comes from forgiveness.
“I can’t change the past, although I would in a heartbeat. I can accept responsibility for my actions so I hope you can find it in your heart to accept my apology.”
Judge Bauer said, “This is a very tragic situation all the way around. Jessica Caron has lost her life. Her family has lost a family member and the community has lost someone who was important to her community.”
In the joint sentencing submission, Laliberte was sentenced to 18 months in jail to be served in Pine Grove Correctional Centre effective Nov. 1. Laliberte had pleaded guilty in October to offering an indignity to Jessica Caron’s body after she had died.
On Nov. 1, the Crown had asked the court for a ban on publication because Laliberte’s co-accused Derek Caron has a trial scheduled in Saskatoon Court of King’s Bench in September 2024. Caron had originally elected to be tried by a jury but on Nov. 6 he re-elected to be tried by judge alone.
On Nov. 1, Judge Bauer had issued a temporary ban on everything heard in court that day until he made his decision the following week.
On Nov. 8, Judge Bauer said he found no statutory evidence to grant the Crown’s request for a ban on publication and said there would be no ban.
“I find that there is no evidence from which the court could find that such a ban is necessary in order to prevent substantial risk to fairness of the trial, and I deny the application.”
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