Tearful daughter expresses remorse after cashing mother’s residential school settlement cheque

A woman is expressing remorse in court after embezzling her mother out of $150,000. CTV London’s Nick Paparella has the details.

As a two‑day sentencing hearing concluded, Ursula Doxtator addressed the court at length, offering a tearful apology.

Doxtator was found guilty last spring of one count of fraud over $5,000 and one count of uttering forged documents.

The court heard that in September 2023, Doxtator received a $150,000 cheque belonging to her mother, Caroline, stemming from a class‑action settlement with the Canadian government related to residential schools. At the time, Doxtator was acting as power of attorney for her elderly mother, who now lives in the United States.

According to the court, Doxtator, 56, deposited the cheque into her personal bank account and spent most of the money within a matter of weeks.

Doxtator, a former Oneida Nation of the Thames band councillor, told the court she had made “very bad decisions.”

“I made some very bad decisions which has caused me shame and embarrassment,” she said. “It hurt me, it cost me my job.”

She also questioned her mother’s credibility, telling the court: “I have no trust or faith in her as a mother. She’s lying.”

Doxtator later said she was remorseful.

“I’m truly sorry for what I’ve done,” she told the court.

Defence lawyer Karen Simpson argued that Doxtator’s sentence should be stayed due to a lengthy delay in preparing a Gladue report, which examines the background and circumstances of Indigenous offenders. Simpson said that if a stay is not granted, the court should impose no more than a conditional sentence.

Crown attorney Jeremy Carnegie is seeking a two‑year custodial sentence.

Justice Kevin McHugh is expected to deliver his decision on April 24.