Court File and Parties
Court File No.: 26/18 Date: 2019 03 29 Ontario Superior Court of Justice
Between: Her Majesty The Queen – and – James Anthony Scordino
Counsel: Amy Stevenson and Nick Chiera, for the Crown Ari Goldkind and Ryan Mushlian, for the Accused
Heard: March 29, 2019
Reasons for Sentence
Conlan J.
I. Introduction
[1] James Anthony Scordino (“Scordino”) was charged with first-degree murder, contrary to section 235(1) of the Criminal Code, in the death of Angela Skorulski (“victim”) at her residence in Oakville on or about February 13, 2017.
[2] After a fairly lengthy trial in Milton, on March 8, 2019, the jury returned a verdict of guilty as charged.
[3] Sentencing was adjourned to today, March 29th, to allow for some victim impact statements to be prepared.
II. The Facts and the Offender
[4] This Court knows very little about Scordino. At the time that he murdered the victim, he was living with his partner in Fort Erie and working in the elevator industry for a company based in Hamilton. He was also involved in a relationship with a woman other than his partner in Fort Erie.
[5] Scordino and the victim were both in their fifties at the time of the killing. They were known to each other. They had some sort of relationship; whether it was purely business is not certain. They were also co-Defendants in a civil lawsuit involving the University of Toronto.
[6] On February 13, 2017, Scordino visited the victim’s condominium building in Oakville. He was captured on video surveillance, in the parking garage, and in the lobby in the presence of the victim, and in the hallway off the elevator proximate to the victim’s unit, also in the presence of the victim. After the murder was committed, he was seen again on video surveillance.
[7] The evidence of the forensic pathologist confirms facts that reveal this to have been a brutal killing. This woman, in the sanctity of her own residence, was shot in the head multiple times. The fourth and final shot was with the barrel of the gun pressed firmly up against the victim’s head. The back of her head. While she was already incapacitated from prior gunshot wounds to the head.
[8] After he killed the victim, Scordino went back to his usual life. He continued to work. He took a leisure trip out of the country. He continued to reside in Fort Erie. He continued to have contact with his girlfriend.
[9] He also took a series of steps to try to conceal his crime. He hid ammunition in the unfinished basement ceiling area of his home. He hid the murder weapon, a handgun registered to his grandfather, in the finished ceiling, above the tiles, of an office at his workplace. He placed the clothing that he wore when he shot and killed the victim in a garbage bag at his workplace.
[10] It was not enough, however, as the police uncovered what happened, aided by the tools of forensic science.
III. Punishment
[11] The following mandatory Orders are hereby issued: (i) firearms and weapons prohibition for life under section 109 of the Criminal Code, (ii) firearm forfeiture under section 491 of the Criminal Code, and (iii) primary DNA. The victim fine surcharge is waived.
[12] For his planned and deliberate intentional shooting and killing of Ms. Angela Skorulski, pursuant to sections 235(1) and 745(a) of the Criminal Code, Scordino is hereby sentenced to imprisonment for life, without eligibility for parole until he has served at least twenty-five (25) years of the sentence.
[13] Section 746(a) of the Criminal Code applies (credit for time in custody between the date of Scordino’s arrest and today’s date).
[14] Needless to say, the murder of Ms. Skorulski has had a devastating effect on her family and friends. To lose a loved-one is a very challenging thing to endure. To have someone with many more years to live ripped from you at the hands of another person, knowing that her body was left there for weeks, alone, to decompose, must be excruciating. I hope that this final chapter will bring some modicum of peace to those who mourn the loss of Ms. Skorulski.
[15] I wish to thank all counsel, Mr. Goldkind and Mr. Mushlian for the Defence, and Ms. Stevenson and Mr. Chiera for the Crown, for their professionalism and helpfulness throughout this proceeding.
[16] Lastly, to the offender, he appears to have been an industrious person. I hope that he can put some of those skills to use in the years ahead.