Grace Robotti admitted she took steps to cover up the killing of Roxanne Louie hours after her death.

It was around 9:30 a.m. on Jan. 4, 2015 鈥� hours after she inflicted about 26 wounds to Louie鈥檚 head and body with a 10-inch pry bar 鈥� when Robotti sent two text messages to Louie鈥檚 phone and left a one voicemail telling her she was about to miss her flight and asking where she was.

Messages she knew Louie would never receive.

鈥淭his was a cover-up. I鈥檓 not denying that. I鈥檓 just saying I 鈥� for some crazy reason that鈥檚 what I thought I had to do. I would do it differently now, but I started on that and that鈥檚 what I thought. I didn鈥檛 think about it,鈥� the soft-spoken Robotti told the Supreme Court jury, wearing a green blazer and a white shirt with blue polka dots. 鈥淚t didn鈥檛 make any sense now looking back and probably doesn鈥檛 make any sense at all, ever, but sure I would have done it differently. I wouldn鈥檛 have done any of that.鈥�

Robotti faces one count of second-degree murder.

Louie was supposed to catch a flight back to Vancouver the day after her and Robotti got into a physical fight which stemmed from arguments over how to properly care for (specifically, hold) Louie鈥檚 son, Robotti鈥檚 great-grandson.

Related:

The morning after the killing, Robotti cleaned the room where she bludgeoned Louie to death, covered Louie in two garbage bags and asked her brother to get rid of the body. She gathered up Louie鈥檚 clothing and personal items putting them in garbage bags.

She then told the jury she disposed of the items in Penticton dumpsters. Robotti said she disposed of the items in multiple containers, one on South Main Street. Later, she said she found more of Louie鈥檚 possessions, which she disposed of in another dumpster.

Her reasons for covering up the killing differed from those Crown counsel John Swanson suggested during the cross-examination of Louie on March 31 at the 91大黄鸭 Law Courts.

Related:

Robotti said the steps she took to cover up the killing were to buy time to find arrangements for Louie鈥檚 son, assuming he would land in the custody of Louie鈥檚 mother, whom she did not want to take care of the child. The distrust, Robotti said, was due to things Louie had said about her own upbringing in the past.

鈥淚 just wanted a little bit of time, a few days, that鈥檚 all I wanted,鈥� Robotti said. 鈥淏y the end of the week or so, we were going to (turn ourselves in) there was no question.鈥�

Robotti would get emotional at times during the testimony, wiping away tears when talking about the relationship between her and Louie.

鈥淲hat I鈥檓 suggesting to you Mrs. Robotti, is that the reason you did all this is because you were hoping to be able to carry the lie that you had created on the morning of Jan. 4 indefinitely,鈥� Swanson said. 鈥淵ou were hoping that if you could get rid of all traces of Roxanne, nobody would be able to tie her death to you.鈥�

鈥淣o. If it had been that I would have done so much more to clean my house and do different things. I just knew that 鈥� it鈥檚 not something you can hide, it鈥檚 not something you want to try and get away with,鈥� Robotti said. 鈥淚t鈥檚 going to be haunting your mind, it haunts your mind. It haunts me today. No. I couldn鈥檛. It was something too horrible. You can鈥檛 bury something like that.鈥�

She told the jury she did lie to police when stating Louie never showed up prior to her scheduled flight to Vancouver, and she was taking steps to buy time to find a safe place for her great grandchild 鈥� eventually planning to turn herself in.

鈥淚鈥檓 not suggesting the killing of Roxanne was planned, but I鈥檓 suggesting to you that it was intentional,鈥� Swanson said.

鈥淣o, it never was,鈥� Robotti replied.

鈥淵ou wanted Roxanne dead on that morning,鈥� Swanson said.

鈥淚f I wanted Roxanne dead we didn鈥檛 have to go through all that horrible nightmare that night. I could have just taken some swings at her really hard when I did have the crowbar. We didn鈥檛 have to go through all that,鈥� Robotti said. 鈥淚 didn鈥檛 want her dead. I wanted to confine her or constrain her, but I didn鈥檛 mean to 鈥� no, to hurt her that bad. I could have hit her so much harder and it wouldn鈥檛 have gone on the way it did. I was afraid to hit her too hard. I still did 鈥� I still did.鈥�

Father of child takes the stand

The father of Roxanne Louie鈥檚 now five-year-old child and Robotti鈥檚 grandson, Dylan Spence, took the stand Friday.

Spence, 27, works in the oilfield in Fort McMurray and his relationship with Louie began in a Penticton nightclub in 2011.

The on-and-off relationship of two to three years had multiple instances of discord, Spence told the jury.

The relationship ended, resulting in multiple contacts with the RCMP and eventually a no-contact order between the two.

鈥淭here was a lot of violence. There was a lot of possession and controlling,鈥� Spence testified. 鈥淏ut more often than not it was the violence.鈥�

Spence outlined three instances, one in particular where he testified Louie had attacked him with multiple bottles, stabbing him in both legs with a broken bottle before he struck her with an open hand to her mouth, ending the dispute. The incident resulted in at least seven stitches to Spence鈥檚 face.

All of which occurred with their son on the floor. Spence said in that incident, a neighbour had called the police, picking up his son and removing him from the residence where he was crawling amongst the glass of the broken bottles.

There were two more major incidents, Spence said, of a similar nature, but less severe.

Spence told the jury he was convicted for an unrelated 2014 assault in Whitecourt, AB.

Crown counsel during cross examination of Spence noted he was in the courtroom during Robotti鈥檚 testimony briefly.

鈥淭here was a brief moment where I was before it was known that I was not to be present,鈥� Spence said.

Spence said the violence was always caused by Louie.

鈥淣ever did I start any sort of physical altercation,鈥� Spence said.

The trial continues Monday at the 91大黄鸭 Law Courts, with one more defence witness planned to go before the jury.