Zahra Sayyadi and her husband—refugees who arrived from Iran in 2010—were in the midst of a failing marriage when the battering incident happened last June 30, defense lawyer Kimberly Clark told the court in the Saskatchewan provincial capital of Saskatoon.
Their daughter, two years and three months old, was crying that day that she wanted to see her dad, Clark said. Sayyadi was caring for the girl full-time and went over to her husband’s home, calling him on her cellphone and begging him to come outside to see his daughter.
A witness across the street reported seeing Sayyadi outside, talking on a phone and appearing very agitated, Crown prosecutor Leslie Dunn said. The witness saw Sayyadi shaking and hitting her daughter in the head. Two other witnesses told police they also saw Sayyadi hit the girl.
When police located Sayyadi and her daughter at a friend’s home later that evening, the girl was unresponsive. Police called 911 because they were concerned the girl might have suffered a head injury.
A medical report found there was bruising, but nothing out of the ordinary for a child her age, Dunn said.
The Crown argued for a six-month conditional sentence order, meaning a sentence that is served in the community, not in jail. Dunn said Sayyadi was in a position of trust and it’s important the sentence speak to general deterrence and denunciation.
However, the defense argued for an absolute discharge, meaning Sayyadi would have no criminal record. Clark noted Sayyadi has no prior criminal record and sought support after the incident, as well as complied with orders from Social Services.
Clark said Sayyadi has already been seriously punished, particularly by having her daughter taken away from her. Sayyadi had some supervised access through Social Services, but that ended in January when she was charged with breaching the ban on unsupervised contact. Sayyadi had encountered her husband and daughter at a pool in Saskatoon. She approached them and held her daughter briefly.
Judge Dan O’Hanlon said he needed more information before making a decision on the sentence. “I have to say, it’s a troubling situation,” O’Hanlon said.
