Phoenix Sinclair

Phoenix Sinclair died alone on a cold basement floor following months of shocking abuse, her tiny
body discarded near an Interlake reserve.

But it took 10 months before police and child welfare officials even realized the five-year-old girl
was missing — and her killing may have continued to go unnoticed if not for the actions of two
older stepbrothers, who finally came forward to speak about the alleged horrors they’d witnessed.


On Wednesday, Crown attorney Rick Saull outlined the case against Karl McKay and Samantha Kematch,
the child’s mother and former step-father, warning jurors they would hear “depressing and
enraging” evidence and to not let emotions cloud their judgment.

Phoenix was repeatedly confined and abused over a lengthy period of time while living with her
mother and stepfather inside a home on the Fisher River reserve, about 200 kilometres north of
Winnipeg.

It’s believed she died on June 11, 2005.

“After the final blows were administered, she was left to die on a cold basement floor by both of
them,” Saull said in his opening statement, which included showing the 10-woman, two-man jury a
picture of Phoenix.

He said the couple made “feeble attempts” to revive Phoenix but never took her to a medical
centre just a few kilometres away.

Instead, they wrapped her tiny body in plastic, grabbed a shovel from a neighbour’s home and then
dug a hole near the local garbage dump and buried her “in the cold ground” in a remote, wooded
area.

The couple then carried on with their lives, even applying for welfare payments that listed Phoenix
as a dependent, said Saull.

They also scrubbed down the basement floor where Phoenix died and repainted it in an attempt to
conceal evidence, he said.

Phoenix’s death would remain secret until March, 2006, when McKay’s two young sons from another
relationship told their mother what they’d seen and heard while spending time in the Fisher Branch
home.

The boys told their mother — who is expected to testify this morning — and she ultimately went
to police.

McKay eventually co-operated with police and led them “to the very spot” where Phoenix had been
buried, said Saull.

He said jurors will hear lengthy video and audio statements from the accused, including one taken of
McKay during a police car ride from Headingley Correctional Institution to Fisher River.

Kematch and McKay differ from each other about what happened to Phoenix and why, said Saull.

The pair are being represented by separate defence lawyers but sat in the same witness box on
Wednesday, with some distance between them.

“We say each of the accused were equally involved in the forcible confinement and abuse of Phoenix
Sinclair,” he said.

Saull told jurors the evidence will show Phoenix “was treated in a way that far exceeds the
standard of acceptable discipline.”

The Crown is calling several experts to detail “dozens and dozens” of injuries suffered by
Phoenix based on an extensive analysis of her remains, he said.

The trial is scheduled to last until Dec. 19.

*****

Samantha Kematch refused to let a Child and Family Services worker see her daughter during a home
visit in March, 2005 — and the agency responded by quickly closing the little girl’s file with
no additional follow-up, jurors were told Wednesday.

It was just three months later that five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair was killed in the basement of her
Fisher River home following what the Crown says was a lengthy period of physical abuse.

An agreed statement of facts submitted by Crown and defence lawyers Wednesday outlines CFS’s
ongoing involvement with Phoenix and her family in the time preceding her tragic death.

The document confirms CFS received a tip on March 5 that prompted them to visit the family’s home
four days later. They were met at the door by Kematch but denied entry.

“The worker spoke with Ms. Kematch but did not speak to Phoenix or access the residence as
Samantha Kematch reported she had someone visiting,” Crown attorney Rick Saull told jurors.

The case worker did catch a glimpse of Kematch’s other child, an infant named Rayne, “and
decided there were no protection concerns despite not seeing Phoenix or the apartment,” said
Saull.

No further details were provided to jurors about the tip that led CFS to the home. CFS workers are
expected to testify during the six-week trial against Kematch and her former common-law husband,
Karl McKay.

Phoenix had a long history with the child welfare system prior to 2005, including two earlier
occasions where her file was closed. The following history was provided to jurors Wednesday.

APRIL 23, 2000: Phoenix is born to Kematch and the father, Stephen Sinclair. The couple “indicated
they were not ready financially or emotionally” to care for their new baby and consented to a CFS
placement. However, the couple changed their minds days later and asked for full custody. CFS
obtained a three-month temporary order of guardianship and allowed the parents to have supervised
visits.

SEPTEMBER, 2000: Phoenix was returned to her family and found to be in good health. Kematch split
from Sinclair months later and allowed him to have full custody of Phoenix.

MARCH, 2002: CFS closed their file for the first time.

FEBRUARY, 2003: CFS reopened the file after Phoenix was taken to hospital with Styrofoam stuck in
her nose.

JUNE, 2003: Phoenix was apprehended by CFS because of concerns about her father’s drug and alcohol
abuse. Kematch then told the agency she wanted to try raising her daughter again.

AUGUST, 2003: Phoenix was placed by CFS in the care of a Winnipeg couple who were friends of the
father. Kematch agreed with the arrangement.

MAY, 2004: Kematch told CFS she was once again caring for her daughter. CFS checked on Phoenix and
found her to be in good health.

JULY, 2004: CFS closed their file for a second time.

DECEMBER, 2004: CFS learned Kematch had given birth to a baby girl and that the father was Karl
McKay. No contact was made with the couple and the file remained closed. It wouldn’t be reopened
until the March, 2005, tip that led them to visit Kematch but leave without seeing Phoenix.

Jurors were also given details about Phoenix’s medical history. Although there was contact in the
early years of her life, Phoenix apparently hadn’t been seen by any doctor in the nine months
preceding her death.

__________________________

A Cry to the Lonely
Kristen Base


I see you there crying
And I think
why?
Are you sick? in pain?
or is it because
you are alone?

I submit to you this:
you are never alone
the Father will-does-
guide you
you are never alone.

As a mother with her child
the Father is
watching. waiting.
when will your search end?
will you ever find His comfort?
submit to Him

You are empty. dry. in
your solitary stillness
you cry.
Be still.
Simply call and
the Father is there.

the Father is here.
He will comfort you.
You are never alone.
Never. Never.
Don't cry.
____________________

**Update**
Parents of murdered Manitoba girl appeal convictions.

http://www.canada.com/Parents+murdered+Manitoba+girl+appeal+convictions/1862248/story.html
____________________

03/2006 Mar 24, 2006 - After searching deep into the brush on a Manitoba reserve, RCMP officers say
they have found evidence that a missing five-year-old girl was buried there. ... "At this time, we
have still not located the body of Phoenix Sinclair," RCMP Sgt. Steve Colwell told reporters
Thursday. ...
From Manitoba RCMP find evidence of girl's remains - Related web
pageswww.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060323/phoenix_remains_060323/20060323


04/2006 Apr 24, 2006 - The ceremony was prompted by the recent discovery of what the RCMP say is the
body of five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair, found near a garbage dump in Fisher River, Man. The group
formed a circle and said prayers before expressing their concern about the quality of care children
receive in ...
From Group prays for children like Phoenix Sinclair - Related web
pageswww.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20060423/phoenix_manitoba_060423


09/2006 Sep 22, 2006 - Kim Edwards was the foster mother of Phoenix Sinclair, a five-year-old girl
who died last year after being in and out of care. Her birth mother and her mother's boyfriend face
first-degree murder charges. Phoenix's death has raised serious concerns about the Child and Family
Services ...
From Girl's death prompts foster mother to host forum... - Related web
pageswww.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2006/09/22/edwards-forum.html


10/2006 Oct 11, 2006 - The Manitoba government called a full public inquiry Wednesday into the death
of five-year-old Phoenix Victoria Sinclair, at the same time that two reviews criticizing the
province's child welfare system were released. Phoenix, who was in and out of foster care through
much of her ...
From Manitoba calls public inquiry into Phoenix... - Related web
pageswww.cbc.ca/canada/manitoba/story/2006/10/11/phoenix-inquiry.html


06/2007 Jun 24, 2007 - One of those was the case of five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair. The girl had
been in and out of foster care most of her life and was killed in June 2005, three months after her
CFS case file was closed. Her death was not noticed until March 2006, after her 12-year-old
stepbrother came ...
From Beaten girl, 3, left to die - Related web
pageswww.winnipegfreepress.com/local/7-hours-to-call-911-50347492.html


11/2007 Nov 9, 2007 - Karl Wesley McKay is charged with first-degree murder in the death of
five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair. Judge Murray Sinclair ruled Friday that McKay must remain in custody
until his trial next November. The contents of the bail hearing cannot be reported under a court
order. ...
From Man accused of killing five-year-old girl denied... - Related web
pagescalsun.canoe.ca/News/National/2007/11/09/4643845.html


05/2008 May 12, 2008 - WINNIPEG — Crown prosecutors say it was inevitable that five-year-old
Phoenix Sinclair's life would come to a brutal end. In closing arguments to the jury, Crown lawyer
Rick Saull said Phoenix was abused by her guardians for months before her death in 2006. ...
From Manitoba girl, 5, abused so much by guardians,... - Related web
pageswww.trurodaily.com/index.cfm?sid=197680&sc=287


06/2008 Jun 11, 2008 - WINNIPEG -- Five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair's short, tortured life ended
slowly as she lay battered and alone in the concrete basement of her family home, a jury was told
yesterday. The full text of this article has 608 words. To continue reading this article, you will
need to purchase ...
From Court girds for 'enraging' evidence as trial... - Related web
pageswww.theglobeandmail.com/servlet/story/LAC.20081106.CHILD06/TPStory/TPNational/Prairies/


11/2008 Nov 7, 2008 - The former partner of a man accused of murdering a five-year-old girl learned
about the killing from their son, a Winnipeg court heard Friday. ... It is believed Phoenix
Sinclair, 5, was killed in 2005, although her remains were not found until months later. Her death
sparked a massive ...
From Witness in 5-year-old's murder trial aware of... - Related web
pageswww.cbc.ca/mobile/text/story_news-topstories.html?/ept/html/story/2008/11/07/sinclair-trial.htm
l


Nov 10, 2008 - Lyle Moffat told the jury Samantha Kematch introduced a girl to him and his partner
as five year old Phoenix Sinclair when they met the accused at Portage Place Mall in March 2006.
Moffat says the girl responded "no" when he asked her if she was Phoenix and she also called another
...
From CJOB 68: Manitoba's Information Superstation New:... - Related web
pageswww.cjob.com/News/Local/Story.aspx?ID=1038867


Nov 12, 2008 - WINNIPEG -- Five-year-old murder victim Phoenix Sinclair was regularly shot with a
pellet gun "for fun" and was choked until she lost consciousness in a game the family called
"chicken," her stepbrother told a Manitoba court Wednesday. The 18-year-old said his father, Karl
McKay, ...
From Five-year-old choked, shot with pellet gun, court... - Related web
pageswww.ctv.ca/servlet/ArticleNews/story/CTVNews/20081112/sinclair_trial_081112?s_name=&no_ads=


Nov 14, 2008 - In videotaped evidence played Friday at the Phoenix Sinclair murder trial in
Winnipeg, the girl's sobbing stepfather told police he knew he had "made a ... Karl McKay and
girlfriend Samantha Kematch, the five-year-old's mother, have pleaded not guilty to first-degree
murder in the 2005 ...
From Phoenix Sinclair's stepfather knew he 'made a big... - Related web
pageswww.cbc.ca/mobile/text/story_news-topstories.html?/ept/html/story/2008/11/14/phoenix-trial.html



Nov 24, 2008 - WINNIPEG - Five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair was forced to do household chores, then
was verbally degraded by her mother if she didn't do them properly, jurors heard Monday. The slain
girl's 16-year-old cousin took the witness stand to testify about what he observed during several
visits ...
From Manitoba mother degraded slain 5-year-old over... - Related web
pageswww.dose.ca/news/story.html?id=6d3887a8-747f-47ec-aeca-864cb7f82db2


12/2008 Dec 10, 2008 - The body of Phoenix Sinclair, who is seen here in an undated photo, was
discovered in 2006 on the Fisher River reserve. Jurors deciding the fate of a Manitoba couple
accused of murdering a five-year-old girl have posed a question to the judge. The jury, deliberating
since Tuesday, ...
From Jurors query judge in Sinclair murder trial - Related web
pageswww.cbc.ca/canada/story/2008/12/10/sinclair-trial.html


Dec 12, 2008 - Mike Aporius/Winnipeg Free PressThe mother and step-father of five-year-old Phoenix
Sinclair were found guilty Friday of first-degree murder. WINNIPEG -- A jury has found Samantha
Kematch and Karl McKay guilty of first-degree murder in the death of five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair.
...
From Mother and stepfather guilty of first-degree... - Related web
pageswww.nationalpost.com/related/topics/story.html?id=1068081


Dec 15, 2008 - The Office of Manitoba's Children's Advocate led three reports into the death of
Phoenix Sinclair in 2006, which included 207 recommendations for ... Karl McKay, were found guilty
Friday of abusing and killing the five-year-old, then burying her in a shallow grave near a garbage
dump. ...
From Child service now better, advocate says - Related web
pageswww.winnipegsun.com/news/manitoba/2008/12/15/7749991-sun.html


Dec 17, 2008 - On Friday, Kematch and McKay were sentenced to life in prison for the first-degree
murder of Kematch's five-year-old daughter Phoenix Sinclair. The Fisher River couple subjected
Phoenix to months of horrifying abuse and left her to die, naked and alone, on a cold basement
floor. ...
From Media can't hide from the depravity in our society - Related web
pageswww.winnipegsun.com/news/winnipeg/2008/12/17/7774581-sun.html


01/2009 Jan 9, 2009 - Karl Wesley McKay has filed to appeal his first-degree murder conviction in
the death of five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair. A jury convicted McKay, 46, and Phoenix's mother,
Samantha Kematch, 27, of first-degree murder following a lengthy trial last month. Kematch filed to
appeal her ...
From Phoenix Sinclair's killers appeal convictions - Related web
pageswww.winnipegsun.com/news/winnipeg/2009/01/09/7976786.html


02/2009 Feb 18, 2009 - A Manitoba judge released police videotape in which Karl McKay led police to
where five-year-old Phoenix Sinclair was buried. York Regional Police deployed its dive team and
marine unit to search Lake Wilcox for two young men who disappeared during a canoe outing. A
16-year-old girl ...
From Dating scam costs $300K - Related web
pagescalsun.canoe.ca/News/Alberta/2009/02/18/8428981-sun.html


04/2009 Apr 24, 2009 - A funeral and burial service was held today for five-year-old Phoenix
Sinclair, who was killed in 2005 by her mother and stepfather. More than 200 mourners filled the
Indian and Metis Friendship Centre for the service for the little girl, who would have celebrated
her ninth birthday ...
From Funeral for Phoenix Sinclair held today - Related web
pageswww.winnipegfreepress.com/breakingnews/Phoenix-Sinclair-to-be-laid-to-rest-43540472.html