Latest news with #CalgaryCourtofKing'sBench
Calgary Herald
10-06-2025
- Calgary Herald
Crown concedes appeal of convicted double-murderer just days after dropping case against second suspect
Just days after dropping murder charges against one suspect in a cold-case double homicide, the Crown has conceded the appeal of a second man already convicted in the case. Article content Defence lawyer Balfour Der said Tuesday he received a letter from the prosecution saying they would not oppose his application for a new trial for Leonard Brian Cochrane. Article content Article content 'I got a letter today saying the Crown is conceding the appeal and is asking to have it sent back for a new trial,' said Der, who is currently out of the country. Article content Article content 'I'm very pleased that that's the result,' Der said. Article content Article content 'We had some good grounds of appeal on some novel arguments that we were confident in succeeding.' Article content One of the novel issues in the case against Cochrane was the use of investigative genetic genealogy, which police forces have been using in recent years to solve historical cases. Article content Last Friday, the prosecution stayed two first-degree murder charges against Calgarian Stuart Douglas MacGregor in a letter filed with Calgary Court of King's Bench by Edmonton Chief Crown prosecutor Sarah Langley. Article content MacGregor was charged in the same 1994 killings for which Cochrane was convicted of two counts of first-degree murder. Article content 'Pursuant to section 579 of the Criminal Code you are hereby directed by counsel instructed by the Attorney General for that purpose to make an entry on the record that the proceedings against the above named accused on the above named charges are stayed,' Langley's letter stated. Article content Article content Der said he didn't have details about the decision to drop the charges against MacGregor, which could be revived within 12 months, but said the concession on Cochrane's appeal could be related. Article content 'I suspect it is, but I do not know the situation on MacGregor,' he said. Article content The letter conceding the Cochrane matter was sent by appeal Crown prosecutor Christine Rideout, Der said. Article content
Calgary Herald
09-06-2025
- Calgary Herald
In Calgary courts: Homicide victim was 'really happy' after finally finding her own home, best friend says
Article content After years of couch surfing or living at her adult son's, Calgarian Judy Maerz was 'really happy' to finally get her own place, only days before she was brutally killed, court heard Monday. Article content Thomas Reilly, the dead woman's best friend, said he helped Maerz move into her 23rd Avenue S.W. subsidized housing apartment suite at the beginning of February 2023. Article content Article content Reilly told Crown prosecutor Hyatt Mograbee that was the first time Maerz, 58, had a place of her own in the 12 years he had known her. Article content Article content 'She was really happy,' Reilly told the Calgary Court of King's Bench trial of Maerz's alleged murderer, Christopher Ward Dunlop. Article content Article content Dunlop, 50, is charged with first-degree murder in the Feb. 16, 2023, death of Maerz, who was stabbed dozens of times and had her throat slit. Article content Dunlop is also charged with causing an indignity to a body after the victim's body was set ablaze in the Deerfoot Athletic Park off 8th Avenue N.E., in the early morning hours of that day. Article content Reilly said he last saw Maerz either on Feb. 13 or 14, when he left her residence after spending the night while visiting from his home in Wetaskiwin. Article content 'She was buzzed … high, intoxicated. She usually was,' he said, adding Maerz would sell sex for money to buy marijuana or crack cocaine. Article content 'She was really happy she had her place. She had a chance to cook for me, make tea,' Reilly said. Article content He said he helped Maerz move into the unit with items she kept stored at her son's and daughter's homes, as well as some things she had purchased through Women In Need Society. Article content Article content A Calgary police officer who photographed the apartment after Maerz's death described it as sparse. Article content Reilly identified Maerz in security footage showing her leaving her new digs around 9 p.m. the evening of Feb. 15. Article content It's the Crown's theory Maerz travelled to the hooker stroll in Forest Lawn where Dunlop picked her up before driving to the secluded athletic park adjacent to the busy Deerfoot Trail. Article content A second friend of the deceased, Brian Sproul, said he last saw Maerz the morning she died when she visited his 28th Street S.E. residence. Article content When Maerz left to catch a bus around 12:30 he told her if she missed the last one she could return and stay the night. Article content 'I thought she made it home alright,' Sproul said.
Calgary Herald
06-06-2025
- Calgary Herald
Double murder suspect has charges stayed in historical Calgary homicides
Historical murder charges against a Calgary man arrested more than 18 months ago in connection with a 1994 double murder have been dropped by the Crown. Article content A letter from Edmonton Chief Crown prosecutor Sarah Langley was filed in Calgary Court of King's Bench on Friday staying two first-degree murder charges against Stuart Douglas MacGregor. Article content Article content MacGregor, also known as Surridge, was arrested in November 2023, and had been in custody since despite three attempts by his lawyers, Rebecca Snukal and Michael Bates, to have him released on bail. Article content Article content 'Pursuant to section 579 of the Criminal Code you are hereby directed by counsel instructed by the Attorney General for that purpose to make an entry on the record that the proceedings against the above named accused on the above named charges are stayed,' Langley's letter to the clerk of the court said. Article content 'If you have any questions or concerns, please do not hesitate to contact our office.' Article content MacGregor's arrest came just days before a second suspect, Leonard Brian Cochrane, was convicted on the same two charges in connection with the July 11, 1994, fatal shootings of Barry Buchart and Trevor Deakins in their Radisson Heights home. Article content Article content Cochrane was linked to the scene by police using investigative genetic genealogy, which compares individuals in known DNA databases and to material found at the scene to narrow the list of suspects to relatives with similar genetic markers. Article content Article content When MacGregor was charged police said they used the same technology to lead them to a second suspect. Article content In Cochrane's trial, he testified he had gone to the victims' residence to buy drugs from Buchart after meeting him a short time earlier at a nearby convenience store where the drug dealer asked if he wanted to purchase some narcotics. Article content After agreeing to purchase an ounce of marijuana and having gone home to pick up some cash to pay for it, Cochrane said he found himself inside the basement suite in the early morning hours when two balaclava-clad intruders stormed in. Article content Cochrane said he was bloodied during a struggle with one of the intruders leading to his blood being found at the scene, but Justice Keith Yamauchi dismissed his claim noting the drops of blood of the offender's found at the scene were inconsistent with his claim he was bleeding heavily.
Calgary Herald
01-05-2025
- Calgary Herald
Father of slain Calgary teen says son's murder had left a hole in an entire community, a day after his killer's guilty plea
The murder of Calgary teen Dean Visser has left a hole in the city's lacrosse community, his father said Thursday, a day after his killer pleaded guilty to a reduced charge. Article content Article content Kevin Visser told Postmedia that his son, like many teens, had his moments of rebellion. Article content 'But contrary to some beliefs, he was not a gang member,' the older Visser said, in a prepared text. Article content His son's killer, who can't be named under provisions of the Youth Criminal Justice Act, pleaded guilty to second-degree murder Wednesday in connection with the June 6, 2024, stabbing death of 16-year-old Visser. Article content Article content Article content Maloney told Calgary Court of King's Bench Justice Lisa Silver that the victim and killer 'harboured animosity towards one another, and had expressed this animosity on the internet, primarily on Instagram.' Article content Victim yelled who are you as he was being stabbed for hoodie Article content That evening, Visser was wearing a high-end Bathing Ape hoodie, known as a BAPE, and carrying a second one for his girlfriend, court heard. Article content His killer, wearing a black hooded sweater with the hood up ran up from behind with a knife in his hand and stabbed the victim three times, Maloney said. Article content 'During the stabbing Visser can be heard shouting 'who are you?'' the prosecutor said. Article content '(The killer) is heard saying 'give me that BAPE.' Visser replies 'you can have the BAPE.'' Article content The offender then fled from the scene, running away with the hoodie he took from the deceased. Article content Article content The victim was rushed to Alberta Children's Hospital in life-threatening condition and died about two hours later. Article content At the request of defence counsel Rebecca Snukal, Silver ordered an updated pre-sentence report on her client ahead of an as yet unscheduled sentencing hearing. Article content Kevin Visser said his son was much more than a victim of a deadly, violent act. Article content 'Dean loved life. loved his friends and was passionate about relationships and was always willing to help those around him,' he wrote. Article content 'Dean's death has left a hole not only in the lives of family and friends, but also there is a hole in the lacrosse community.' Article content
