A Toronto-area daycare provider is no longer facing a murder charge in the death of a baby in her care.
April Luckese had been charged in January with second-degree murder and aggravated assault, but her lawyer says the Crown stayed those charges in a Brampton, Ont., court today.
Bruce Daley says his client now faces two new charges in the child's death: failing to provide the necessaries of life and criminal negligence causing death.
He says she intends to plead not guilty and the next court date, expected to deal with procedural matters, is Jan. 13.
Duy-An Nguyen, a 14-month-old girl, was found unconscious and unresponsive in Luckese's home -- an unlicensed daycare centre -- on Jan. 5 of this year and died in hospital two days later.
Luckese was released on $10,000 bail later that month.
Daley said the test for the Crown in deciding to stay charges is whether there is a reasonable prospect of conviction.
"There's no doubt in my mind that any senior prosecutor looking at the evidence that's been disclosed to me would find no reasonable prospect of convicting my client ever (on the original charges)," Daley said.
