Mom weeps at dad's trial

Photo: Ryan MacDonald Photography

A mother wept at her estranged husband's trial for the murder of their daughters when a defence lawyer accused her of lying about when she learned the man's electricity had been shut off.

Sarah Cotton has testified at the B.C. Supreme Court trial that before she dropped off the girls at Andrew Berry's apartment in Oak Bay, B.C., on Dec. 21, 2017, she stopped by and noticed it was dark. Her daughter Chloe, 6, said they used flashlights and it was like "camping."

This was the first time she realized he might not have power, she said, but she didn't mention it when she dropped off Chloe and Aubrey, 4, because she didn't want to "provoke" him. She instead sent him two emails to which he didn't reply.

She also said that Dec. 21 is her birthday and that morning, Berry emailed her to ask if she wanted to keep the girls overnight. Cotton said it was an "unusual" offer and she wished he'd given her more notice as she had plans.

Defence lawyer Kevin McCullough questioned on Tuesday why she didn't change her mind and take him up on the offer to keep the girls overnight, after she learned he had no power in his apartment.

"That is the biggest regret I'll ever have in my life," she said, taking her glasses off and sobbing into her hands.

Cotton went to police on Dec. 25 when Berry failed to return the girls as scheduled. Officers entered his suite and found the girls dead with stab wounds and Berry with a black eye and cuts on his chest and neck.

The Crown alleges he stabbed the girls dozens of times before attempting to kill himself. Berry has pleaded not guilty to two counts of second-degree murder.

McCullough accused Cotton of lying about only learning on Dec. 21 that Berry had no electricity. He said she knew "full well" for quite some time and she was also fabricating her concern about provoking him.

"I'm going to suggest you created this story because you wanted to offset Mr. Berry's offer to you to have the children on your birthday. Isn't that what you've done?" he asked.

"No," she replied through tears.