Murder trial starts for Lam sisters accused in mom’s death

Investigators at the scene of the death of Kieu Lam in October 2022. Photo by TONY CALDWELL /POSTMEDIAArticle content

After a lengthy jury selection process, two Ottawa sisters accused of killing their elderly mother after years of abuse will stand trial for the next five weeks starting Tuesday.

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Chau Kanh Lam and Hue Ai Lam, along with defence lawyers and the Crown attorney, appeared in the Ontario Superior Court of Justice in downtown Ottawa on Monday morning for jury selection.

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Both sisters were charged with first-degree murder after police found their mother, Kieu Lam, dead in bed in October 2022 in the townhouse they shared. Chau and Hue both pleaded not guilty through a Vietnamese interpreter in court Monday.

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Dozens of people were called in for jury duty, but only 13 jurors were selected. One alternate juror was also selected in case someone isn’t able to participate in future court proceedings related to the case.

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Defence lawyers Ewan Lyttle, who will be representing Chau, and Paolo Giancaterino, who will be representing Hue, as well as Crown attorney Julien Whitten said the trial will take about five weeks.

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Ontario Superior Court Justice Narissa Somji will be presiding over the case.

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Court was recessed for the day shortly after the jurors were sworn in and confirmed in the afternoon. The matter is set to reconvene on Tuesday morning in the same courthouse, where the Crown will be giving its opening statement.

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Ottawa police officers said they responded to a call at a townhouse on Bowmount Street in Cyrville at around 12:23 a.m. on Oct. 31, 2022.

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According to police, officers found Kieu Lam, 88, dead in bed and it looked like she had been beaten to death.

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Chau, who called police, and Hue were later arrested and charged with first-degree murder.

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The two sisters were then interviewed by homicide detectives and gave incriminating statements, according to police.

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The Ottawa Police Service then accused the two sisters of plotting to kill their mother three days before the incident. Chau, then 56 years old, and Hue, then 59, were living with their mom at the time. The sisters allegedly told police that they were subjected to years of psychological and physical abuse, and decided to end it.