UPDATE: The Gerald Stanley murder trial is underway at Battleford courthouse with opening statements and the first testimony in the case.
First up on the stand was Cpl. Terry Heroux of the RCMP who was called to the Stanley farm in the RM of Glenside on the evening of Aug. 9.
The testimony included images of aerial and other photos of the Stanley property, as well as some disturbing images including an image of shooting victim Colten Boushie lying on the ground outside the open door of the vehicle he was in.
This marks the first full day of testimony in the case following jury selection on Monday.
The initial story, however, was a delayed start, due to treacherous weather and road conditions surrounding Battleford.
When court convened at the 10 a.m. start time, the court learned one of the out-of-town jurors could not make it in due to the bad road conditions. That juror was excused; a second juror who had claimed personal hardship was also brought into the room and, after explaining his situation, was also excused. That meant the two alternates were able to fill the jury positions and the trial got under way,
The day started with opening remarks of Crown prosecutor Bill Burge, who spent his time outlining what jurors would hear in the case.
Burge told the jury witnesses would start with three police officers who would describe the physical setup at the Stanley property. He described Colten Boushie as being inside a vehicle when he was shot and that he died of a gunshot wound.
A bloodstain pattern analyst was expected to be called Tuesday. Some civilian evidence was expected to be called Wednesday, said Burge.
According to the facts outlined by the Crown, Gerald Stanley resides in the Biggar area where he farmed and raised cattle, he also did mechanical work on vehicles. Burge said Sheldon Stanley, Gerald Stanley’s son, will be a witness and will testify about hearing a loud vehicle come into their yard and seeing someone came out of the vehicle and try to start a quad.
Burge said Sheldon will testify this “caused a reaction,” that he ran towards the quad, yelling, and the individuals got back in their vehicle. Burge also noted Gerald Stanley struck the windshield of the car with a hammer.
According to the opening statement by Burge, Sheldon Stanley was running inside to get his car keys, but as he was running he heard two gunshots, and then a third shot.
He soon after found Gerald Stanley standing beside the vehicle in which Boushie was slumped in the driver’s seat, with two women in the passenger seats. Two others from the vehicle had run away.
Burge told the jury that this trial will be shorter than most as several facts have been agreed to, allowing them to concentrate on the important facts of this case. He credited defence lawyer Scott Spencer for this, calling him “very professional.”
In other facts outlined by Burge, inside the Stanley residence a handgun was found – a pistol that had a magazine. A firearms expert has determined the expended cartridges were fired from a Russian-made Tokarev handgun. Experts found Boushie’s DNA on both the trigger guard and trigger hammer of the gun.
Burge also indicated the autopsy report will show the only significant injury to Boushie was the gunshot wound that exited through his right neck, and that was the cause of death.
The final two witnesses Burge said he will call will include a firearms expert who will testify he did find the expended cartridge inside the vehicle.
After his opening statement, Burge proceeded to call Cpl. Heroux to the stand.
Heroux’s testimony that morning included plenty of image evidence. It included aerial photos from the Stanley farm, including the main yard, the driveway and the scene as Heroux arrived late that night.
Heroux then warned of some disturbing images, at which point a picture from the scene was shown of a grey 2003 Ford Escape, with a body covered by a blanket.
A picture of the quadrunner was also shown. There were also groove marks in the gravel road, also considered important.
There was also a second blue Ford Escape at the scene as well, southeast of the house.
Photos were all shown of the rifle found beside the Boushie vehicle. Five bullets were found in the tubular magazine and one bullet was in the chamber of that rifle.
The most graphic images presented showed Boushie located outside the open door grey Ford Escape, face down outside the vehicle’s driver-side front door, with blood on the driver’s seat.
When Heroux resumed testimony following the break, more images were shown with the focus mainly on ammunition and shell casings found at the scene.
A bullet casing had been found with markings BXN-53. A second was found approximately 18 meters from the power pole, in the yard in front of the Ford Escape.
Other casings were found near the front steps of the Stanley home and near the doghouse. The casings found near the grey Escape were not corroded, however.
Heroux also testified about what happened with the grey Ford Escape afterwards when it was transported to their secure bay in Saskatoon. Several more images were shown from that vehicle.
At that point in the testimony, the trial broke for lunch and was expected to resume at 2 p.m. Stay with the Battlefords News-Optimist for further updates on the Gerald Stanley trial.
Sgt. Jennifer Barnes, an expert in exam and analysis of bloodstains and bloodstain patterns, was also due to take the stand this afternoon.
