Woman accused of killing child allegedly mistreated others

Author: Margaret Zack; Staff Writer

A Robbinsdale woman charged with killing her 2-year-old daughter last summer mistreated the girl on other occasions and mistreated other children under her care, according to court documents and pretrial testimony.

Jury selection for the trial of Janet Marie Ostlund, 33, is expected to begin this week in Hennepin County District Court. She is charged with second-degree murder for the death of Maria Ostlund, who allegedly was shaken to death.

Assistant Hennepin County Attorney John Brink has filed notice of 17 incidents involving Ostlund, not all involving children, which he wants to introduce as evidence in her trial. Ostlund has not been charged in any of the 17 incidents.

Jeff Iaquinto testified Tuesday that patches of hair were missing from his son's head on four occasions over a six-month period when Ostlund was caring for the boy.

He said Ostlund told him the first time that she'd had to cut gum from the youngster's hair. Iaquinto said he didn't ask Ostlund about the other incidents. Judge Robert Schumacher ruled yesterday that two other incidents that Iaquinto testified he had observed in the Ostlund home were inadmissible.

Also testifying yesterday was Sara Ebaugh, Ostlund's cousin, who worked with Ostlund as a baby sitter. Ebaugh said she saw Ostlund drop children into their cribs rather than laying them down. Ebaugh also testified that she saw Ostlund feed a young girl by dropping a meatball on the floor for her. The child ate the meatball, she said.

At least two other parents whose children were cared for by Ostlund are expected to testify, Brink said.

Ostlund told officials that she didn't see her daughter, who she adopted from El Salvador, injured but thought that she had fallen off the sofa. The child died from bleeding and brain swelling caused by a head injury, according to an autopsy.

Steve Meshbesher, Ostlund's attorney, said yesterday that he plans to call four medical experts who will testify that the injuries were accidental.

Court documents also allege that Maria Ostlund suffered a broken arm in October 1985, a black eye a month or two later, and a bloody mouth in May 1986.

Brink told Schumacher yesterday that he was trying to introduce the evidence to show a common scheme or plan and to discount the accident theory. He said the incidents showed Ostlund lacked control when she became angry.

Meshbesher argued that none of the alleged incidents involved shaking or bruising of children and showed no common scheme or plan.