Investigation into death of girl, 3, marred by ‘errors, neglect,’ review finds
HALIFAX — An independent review has found the Truro Police Service badly bungled its investigation into the 2005 death of a three-year-old Nova Scotia girl, failing even to get a warrant before seizing items from the suspect’s home.
Samantha Mercer died on March 3, 2005, from injuries including a severe head injury. Terry Dean Allen, the boyfriend of the girl’s mother, was charged with manslaughter, but was acquitted in September 2009.
Gerard Mitchell, police commissioner for Prince Edward Island and retired chief justice, said in his report released Wednesday that the investigation was flawed in multiple ways.
“This was clearly a major case that required a very careful, methodical, and painstaking investigative approach. The Truro police did not take that kind of approach,” said the review, ordered by Justice Minister Diana Whalen earlier this year.