D. Russell

The offender was convicted by a jury of unlawful act manslaughter for the shooting death of his wife during a struggle over a loaded handgun.

The Crown sought 7 to 8 years imprisonment, while the defence sought a sentence of time served.

The court found the offender's moral blameworthiness to be at the higher end of the spectrum due to the domestic context and the introduction of a loaded firearm into a volatile situation.

The court imposed a global sentence of 7 years imprisonment, less enhanced pre-sentence custody credit at a 1.5:1 ratio, resulting in a net sentence of 2 years, 5 months, and 23 days.

The Crown applied to admit the ante mortem statements of the deceased in a first-degree murder trial.

The deceased had made statements to friends and family about the breakdown of her marriage and her husband's resulting anger and behaviour.

The court held that the statements were admissible under both the traditional state of mind exception and the principled approach to hearsay, as they were relevant to animus and motive, and met the threshold for reliability.

The accused was charged with dangerous operation of a motor vehicle causing death and bodily harm after his vehicle collided with a group of oncoming motorcyclists.

The Crown alleged the accused crossed the centre line while distracted by a text message.

The court reviewed conflicting eyewitness testimony and expert accident reconstruction evidence regarding the point of impact and whether the accused crossed the centre line.

Applying the Supreme Court of Canada's jurisprudence on dangerous driving, the court found the Crown failed to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that the accused was texting, that he crossed the centre line, or that his driving constituted a marked departure from the standard of care.

The accused was acquitted on all counts.