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ÎYÂRHE NAKODA – An Îyârhe Nakoda man convicted of killing his infant daughter more than two years ago has been sentenced to nine-and-a-half years in prison.
Tyriq Kootenay, 23, of Îyârhe Nakoda First Nation, was initially charged with second-degree murder in the death of six-month-old Tanayah Kootenay-Hunter but pleaded guilty to a lesser charge of manslaughter in August.
In a written decision detailing sentencing and the circumstances of the infant’s death, Court of King’s Bench Justice Michele Hollins called the case “extremely distressing for all involved.”
“Tanayah’s injuries were extensive,” said Hollins. “It is almost impossible to understand how so many injuries could be found on such a small little body.”
During Kootenay’s trial, the court heard the man had been drinking alcohol and using drugs at his Mînî Thnî residence on the day of his daughter’s death, Aug. 23, 2021.
Brenna Hunter, the infant’s mother, told police that Kootenay had been physical with her that evening, “choking her when they had an argument about the children and later hitting her with a piece of wood,” the sentencing document stated.
He also got into a physical altercation with two other adults present in the household, Hollins stated in the document.
Hunter and the other individuals left the home, with Hunter going to a neighbour’s house to seek help. The couple’s children, including Kootenay-Hunter’s 18-month-old sister Tyenna, were left with Kootenay at the residence.
Police later arrived to find Hunter “extremely intoxicated and incoherent.” She was sent to hospital, according to the decision.
Afterward, officers went to Kootenay’s home for a welfare check. Although Kootenay was home at the time, he did not answer the door and police left.
“Although Mr. Kootenay later told police that Tanayah was alive at that time, it is unclear whether that was the case,” said Hollins. “In any event, no one appears to have understood the jeopardy these children were in at the time.”
Hunter returned to the residence the next morning with a friend to collect the children but was told by Kootenay that child and family services had picked them up.
This was not true as Hunter found Tyenna inside, she told the court, but could not find Tanayah. The woman left with her eldest daughter, clothes and a sleeper.
The next day, Hunter noticed blood on the sleeper, the decision stated.
“Late on Aug. 25, 2021, police went back and searched the home,” said Hollins. “They found Tanayah’s body in a suitcase in the basement, wrapped in a blanket.”
The infant was found with the “top of her head caved in and her face badly bruised.”
Kootenay-Hunter’s autopsy revealed blunt force injuries, bruises and cuts to her face, head, neck and torso.
“Her skull was fractured, her arms and ribs were broken. There was also a large bite mark on her back,” said Hollins.
“It is difficult to imagine more egregious circumstance in which a human being could die,” she said.
Kootenay later claimed to have no memory of the events that transpired, but he did confess to officers that he had “thrown” Tanayah into the wall. His admission aligns with investigators’ findings of a dent in the master bedroom wall of the residence, accompanied by blood that was confirmed to belong to Tanayah. He also admitted to biting her.
“The forensic analysis showed the bite marks to be consistent with his dental impression,” reads the decision.
When he awoke the next day, Kootenay told police the little girl was beside him in bed, not breathing. The infant’s father changed her clothes, put her in a blanket and placed her in the suitcase officers later found.
In his August trial, Crown prosecutors Geea Atanase and James Sawa said, for his crimes, Kootenay should be sentenced to 10 years in prison.
A Gladue report – a way for the judge to consider the unique circumstances and experiences of Indigenous peoples – was provided to the court to help determine sentencing.
Kootenay was the only source of information for the report, despite efforts to obtain information from his family members, most of whom live in Mînî Thnî.
His parents, however, did provide information to aid in creating the pre-sentence report. Their information supported what was known about Kootenay’s history, including family life.
Raised from toddler age by his grandmother – a residential school survivor – after his parents separated, Kootenay was taught about his culture and practices at home.
His grandmother, Evangeline, took him and his brother to sweat lodges, powwows and other cultural events. Stoney – their native tongue – was spoken at home.
“She did not drink alcohol and ensured that Kootenay attended school and played hockey. His life with his grandmother was relatively safe and structured,” said Hollins.
But when his grandmother died, Kootenay, who was 16 years old at the time, said life went “downhill quickly.” His life became marked by drug and alcohol abuse, and he began finding himself in trouble with the law.
“From his youth record to his adult record, it is a constant stream of new convictions, including for weapons offences, proceeds of crime, uttering threats, assault and assault causing bodily harm,” said Hollins.
From the time of his grandmother’s death to Kootenay-Hunter’s death is a “relatively straight line” marked by a “rapid descent into alcohol and drug abuse, surrounded by other substance addicted people and entrenched in repeated criminal behaviour,” she added.
While in custody for the past two years for the tragic death of his daughter, however, Kootenay has remained sober, marking the longest period of sobriety he has experienced since his grandmother’s death.
“This has allowed, or perhaps forced, Mr. Kootenay to try and come to grips with Tanayah’s death and his responsibility for her death,” said Hollins, who further noted in the court’s decision that she is bound by the Criminal Code to consider Kootenay’s crimes in the context of being an Indigenous offender.
“I agree with the Crown that Mr. Kootenay bears some level of responsibility for becoming so intoxicated that day. However, to pretend that Mr. Kootenay had all the same opportunities to choose a sober life as I would have, for example, ignores the realities that I am bound to consider.”
It was further noted Kootenay, who pleaded guilty to manslaughter, took legal responsibility for killing his daughter and spared Hunter the hurt of testifying at trial about their daughter’s death.
Defence counsels David Roper and Balfour Der recommended a sentence of eight years for Kootenay, minus time served pre-trial.
The court determined this was not sufficient and decided Kootenay would serve another seven-and-a-half years, in addition to his two years already served in custody.
The Local Journalism Initiative is funded by the Government of Canada. The position covers Îyârhe (Stoney) Nakoda First Nation and Kananaskis Country.
