Chipman double-homicide case delayed again as defence waits for disclosure of evidence
CBC
A case against a Chipman man charged with two counts of first-degree murder has been delayed for a third time because of a substantial amount of evidence that has yet to be shared with the defence.
Dates for a preliminary hearing were scheduled to be set on Monday, but defence lawyer Carley Parish said by telephone that she still hadn't received disclosure of evidence from the Crown.
Mark Elley was arrested in January and charged in the deaths of Robert Waugh, 47, and Victoria King, 23, both of the Fredericton area, whose bodies were discovered in a burnt-out SUV in Chipman in November.
Chipman RCMP responded Nov. 25 at around 8 a.m. to a report of two people inside a burning vehicle off Midland Road, about 60 kilometres northeast of Fredericton.
When officers arrived, they located the bodies of a man and woman inside a white Chevrolet Equinox "that had been consumed by fire."
After Elley's arrest in January, Cpl. Hans Ouellette, spokesperson for the New Brunswick RCMP, wouldn't say whether the accused and victims were known to each other, or whether the accused is known to police, citing the court case and continuing investigation.
He also didn't say at the time whether the victims were killed by the fire.
On Monday, Crown prosecutor Jennifer Cooper said there is "substantial disclosure" in the case, which takes a lot of time and effort to review.
She said there are 300 documents alone, "not pages but documents."
Cooper said the disclosure of evidence is "a very serious matter" and it's important that the vetting be done properly. She said in response to questions by Judge Lyne Raymond that it's unrealistic that the disclosure would be ready by the end of the week.
Raymond set the matter over until March 24, at which time the Crown is expected to give an indication of when that disclosure will be ready.
The setting of preliminary hearing dates were also delayed on Feb. 10 and Feb. 24, again because the defence didn't have the disclosure of evidence.
Parish also raised the issue that her client was arrested in January and still hasn't had a bail hearing.
Elley appeared in court on Monday by telephone and remains in custody.
The Supreme Court of Canada is deliberating a case that could shape the way sentences are handed down in cases where both the offender and victim are Indigenous, which some Nunavut lawyers say could have ramifications for the Inuit-majority territory.
A man barricaded in a former church in Welland, Ont., was taken into custody early Saturday, nearly 24 hours into a standoff that began over a fence dispute.
Peel police are investigating after a Friday night shooting in Mississauga left one person dead, police said.
Another busy construction season has come to an end in London, and the city is already looking ahead to next spring when a slew of new projects are expected to begin.
Prime Minister Mark Carney has begun to lay out publicly what he sees as boundaries when dealing with China, as his government wades into a new relationship with the economic giant.
Ferry crossings are cancelled and over a thousand households are left without power Saturday morning, due to high winds and severe weather conditions.
Tens of thousands of Nova Scotia Power customers are waking up without power on Saturday morning after high winds and rain hit the province on Friday night.
Statistics Canada is reporting a population decrease last quarter for New Brunswick — its largest quarterly decline since the 1970s, according to an economic development consultant.
Residents clapped, danced, sang and cried in the Anishinaabe community of Kitcisakik this week when the lights were finally turned on for the first time.
A man is suing three members of a Winnipeg family and a real estate broker he alleges used his intellectual disability to financially exploit him through property deals in Canada and India, leaving him out hundreds of thousands of dollars.
When Stephanie Gamble watched her mother model the first dress she made, smiling wide and walking an imaginary runway, she knew that was what she wanted to keep doing in her life.
'Tis the season for cuddling on the couch with a cup of hot chocolate and watching holiday movies. And for people in B.C.'s Interior, that can increasingly mean seeing their home communities on display.
Every year, snowy owls spread their wings and migrate down to the Prairies, where they enjoy access to plenty of rodent prey in vast open spaces.