A B.C. Supreme Court Justice found Perry Andrew Charlie guilty of second-degree murder Tuesday in the drug-related shootings deaths of two men and serious wounding of a third nearly three years ago.
Justice Marguerite Church found Charlie pulled the trigger on one of the three shotguns used in a Jan. 25, 2017 roadside hail of gunfire that led to the deaths of David Laurin Franks and Thomas Burt Reed, as well as Reed's Shih Tzu dog, Molly. Bradley William Knight, who dove onto the back seat floor, was the sole survivor.
Co-accused Seaver Tye Miller and Joshua Steven West have each pleaded guilty to two counts of second-degree murder and Aaron Ryan Moore to two counts of criminal negligence causing death. All four had initially faced counts of first-degree murder and attempted murder. Charlie opted to contest the counts he was facing and a 10-day trial was held in June with Church reserving decision.
Much of Church's verdict hinged on testimony from two witnesses. Thomas Lee was unemployed and driving for hire and, on the night of the shootings, agreed to drive the four accused around the city in his minivan. Lee's friend, Steven Ray was along for the ride. According to their testimony, they eventually ended up at a roadside pullout on Foothills Boulevard near North Nechako Road, ostensibly to purchase some cocaine from Franks.
Lee testified he saw Miller and West get out of the passenger-side doors, each carrying a shotgun and then heard 15-20 rounds of gunfire go off over about 30 seconds.
Charlie's involvement was less clear. Ray and Moore had been told to go to the back of the van and keep their heads down while Lee testified someone who went by the nickname "Unique" sat directly behind him. Lee further testified he thought he heard the driver's side rear door slide open and then the sound of gunfire from that side but was not completely sure.
During the trial, defence counsel Jason LeBlond raised some uncertainly over Lee's identification of Charlie from a police photo pack. Lee initially identified another man as Charlie but then changed his mind when he got a look at the actual photo of Charlie.
LeBlond vigorously cross examined Lee over the apparent discrepancy but Church noted that not only did Lee identify Charlie when he saw the photo but noted that the accused went by the nickname "Unique."
During the preliminary inquiry, Lee also identified Charlie as he sat in the docket while also commenting that he looked much different. Church said she found that comment compelling given that another witness familiar with Charlie said the weight of the accused fluctuated considerably.
Evidence also showed Lee had previously driven Charlie to a meeting with a probation officer, leading Church to find he was familiar with the accused prior to the night in question.
Other evidence putting Charlie at the scene included a banner emblazoned with the nickname on his Facebook and a tattoo with the same word in a similar script on one of his forearms. A shoe print found at the scene was of the brand Charlie was wearing at the time of his arrest but no accidental characteristics to confirm the match were found. As well, a shoe box for that brand was found in a closet in Miller's home.
Forensic analysis concluded the 14 of the 15 shotgun shells were fired from any of three guns, while the source of one shell could not be determined.
Given Lee's identification of Charlie, his testimony that West and Miller exited the passenger side and Ray's testimony that Moore had stayed in the back, "by process of elimination," Charlie was the third shooter, Church found.
However, Church found the evidence presented by the Crown "falls far short" of showing there was the planning and deliberation for first degree murder.
It had been the Crown's theory that a hit had been ordered on Franks after he had offended someone in the local drug scene and had been lured to the scene on the pretext of selling some cocaine to a known customer.
Church said defence counsel countered with an "equally possible interpretation" that drug dealing can be a dangerous business and that the shooting began after "something went wrong." A knife was found in the car and, according to testimony, Franks was out of the car for about a half-minute before the gunfire erupted.
Knight is in his late 60s and Franks was 46 years old and Reed was 51 at the time of their deaths. In contrast, at the time of their arrests, Charlie was 24, Miller was 21, Moore was 27 and West was 33.
Also on Tuesday, Church agreed with a joint submission from Crown and defence counsels to sentence Moore to five years. Less credit for time served prior to sentencing, Moore has 282 days remaining if the term is issued.
Miller, West and Charlie will be sentenced at a later date.
