A Toronto-area woman charged in the death of a 14-month-old girl was released on bail after she appeared in court Friday morning.
April Luckese, 35, is charged with second-degree murder in the death of 14-month-old Duy-An Nguyen.
Nguyen was rushed to Toronto's Hospital for Sick Children from April's Daycare, an unlicensed homecare business in nearby Mississauga, on Jan. 5. The toddler died two days later.
After the court appearance in Brampton, Ont., Luckese's lawyer Bruce Daley told reporters his client is not a flight risk. He also said Luckese will be pleading not guilty to the charge of second-degree murder.
"She's a strong lady," said Daley, who noted that his client is "doing well, all things considered."
"She would hope the public will remember A, the presumption of innocence and B, the fact that this particular area of the law has resulted in a lot of wrongful convictions," Daley told The Canadian Press.
"We hope no one makes a rush to judgment until we see what the evidence is."
Luckese was released on $10,000 bail Friday afternoon, with her next court appearance set for Feb. 7.
Some childcare advocates believe the death should be probed by a coroner's inquest. They believe the death is part of a systemic failure in the province's child care system.
With files from CTV Toronto's Sneha Kulkarni
