
Appeal dismissed for Edmonton man who killed 7-year-old girl
An Edmonton man has failed to overturn a murder conviction he received two years ago for stabbing a girl to death with scissors.
David Moss was convicted of killing seven-year-old Bella Rose Desrosiers in front of her mother and little sister on May 18, 2020.
Moss, in a state of psychosis, stabbed the young girl and dragged her from her bedroom while her mother, Melissa Francis, was tucking her into bed.
Moss was found guilty of second-degree murder.
Moss had urged the Alberta Court of Appeal to reduce his conviction from murder to the less-severe manslaughter in the death of Desrosiers.
Moss argued the trial judge should not have convicted him of murder because he was mentally unwell and not in a state of mind to form the intent to commit such a crime.
But appeal judges said when all of the evidence is taken into account, there is not enough to show the judge was wrong to draw a conclusion that Moss knew his actions could cause harm.
Second-degree murder comes with an automatic life sentence and a parole ineligibility period of 10 to 25 years.
Court heard Moss was a friend of the girl's mother and one night, just as the mother was about to kiss the girl good night, he entered her bedroom with a pair of scissors, pushed the mom aside, and slashed and cut the girl's neck repeatedly.
Moss testified that he thought he was in a game as he stabbed the girl and said the voice of a demon told him to harm her.
Hashtags

Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles


CTV News
11 minutes ago
- CTV News
CTV National News: Terror at Calgary Stampede after multiple people stabbed
Watch Three people are in hospital with life-threatening injuries following a targeted stabbing attack on the midway of the Calgary Stampede. Kathy Le has the latest.


CTV News
26 minutes ago
- CTV News
North Bay council split over call to audit mayor's expenses
As chaos erupted in the chambers as North Bay city council rejected a motion for an independent audit of the mayor's expenses after personal credit card use was revealed last month. Mayor Peter Chirico repaid about $16,000 in personal charges but now faces scrutiny. Councillor Tanya Vrebosch calls for transparency, while others defend Chirico. In the end, no audit was voted on, but the council did agree to quarterly online expense reports. Eric Taschner has more.


CTV News
40 minutes ago
- CTV News
Criminal breach charges withdrawn for man found not criminally responsible for wife's death and house explosion
Some charges have been withdrawn after a hospital report said Udo Haan breached his review board requirements. CTV's Heather Senoran explains. A court in St. Thomas has withdrawn criminal breach charges against a Kitchener, Ont. man who was previously found not criminally responsible for his wife's death and an explosion that destroyed the couple's home in 2018. In 2023, a judge ruled Udo Haan was suffering from delusions when he killed his wife, Edra, and blew up their home on Sprucedale Cresent. Haan was sent to the Southwest Centre for Forensic Mental Health Care in St. Thomas at the conclusion of his criminal case and has been diagnosed with an unspecified bipolar disorder. He has been taking lithium as part of a treatment plan. His care has been under the purview of the Ontario Review Board. The board gave Haan permission to move out of the hospital in September 2024. Shortly after, he was living independently in an apartment near the hospital. Charges withdrawn In April 2025, a hospital report said police went to Haan's apartment after a woman complained he had been harassing her. The report said when police arrived at his apartment, they found him drinking beer and smoking cannabis. Drinking alcohol, smoking cannabis and having a lighter on him were all considered violations of his order and he was criminally charged. On Tuesday, the charges were withdrawn. 'These charges are, first of all, they're just based upon things that anybody could do, like having a beer, a joint and a lighter to light them,' Stephen Gehl, Haan's lawyer, said after the charges were withdrawn. 'It's not, by anybody's estimation, something that would be that big a deal in normal circumstances.' Gehl said the charges were withdrawn because the Ontario Review Board, who has jurisdiction over his case, is already dealing with it. 'The board orders can be enforced in criminal court, but it's kind of pointless if you're going to enforce it in the review board system. Why do it twice?' he said. Haan is back at the hospital, according to Gehl. 'When you breach the terms imposed by the review board, the hospital has the power to rehospitalize. They take you back into the hospital and then keep you in the hospital. They call that a restriction of liberty. And so that effectively would do far more to a patient than a prosecution for what is essentially minor offenses,' Gehl said. Searching for justice Al Pinheiro, Edra Haan's husband, said it has been a painful process from the start. 'It was a real cluster right off the start,' Pinheiro said. 'The explosion, finding her body on one side, him having gone to the hospital and then before they charged him. It was, I think, a week or so, maybe a week and a half before charges were laid.' He said the family is still hurting. Pinheiro questions if Haan living independently is right. '[If] you're deemed criminally not responsible at the time, but then they can get you back living a normal life, then you should go back and pay for what you did,' Pinheiro said. Gehl believes that not criminally responsible means there is no one at fault. 'It's not intended to be a punitive system or to reflect condemnation against the offender because that person isn't responsible. This is intended to be therapeutic. Can we assist this person in somehow recovering? If we can't, he stays in and there are people who are in that system for decades,' Gehl said. A doctor at the facility determined Haan was incapable of making treatment decisions for his bipolar condition, causing Haan to launch a court appeal for that decision. The hospital noted that the appeal limited his treatment options, meaning his hospital stay would likely be extended. Gehl said Haan no longer plans to appeal that decision.