Mistrial declared in case of teen bystander killed in Vancouver gang shooting

After five days of deliberations, jurors were unable to break their deadlock in the second-degree murder trial of Kane Carter, who is accused of fatally shooting a rival gang member and an innocent teen passerby in January 2018.

The jury began deliberating on Friday, but was unable to reach a consensus. On Tuesday, a mistrial was declared.

Carter, 28, is charged with the second-degree murders of 15-year-old Alfred Wong and 23-year-old Kevin Whiteside during an incident near Broadway and Ontario Street in Vancouver.

The jury first informed B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Wedge that it was having difficulties reaching a unanimous verdict on Sunday.

The group then deliberated all day Monday, before once again telling Wedge they could not reach a unanimous verdict early Tuesday afternoon.

Wedge asked the group to give it one last try, but less than two hours later, they informed her they thought it was "unhealthy" to continue deliberations.

“While carrying out your obligations as jurors over these past few months, you’ve represented the people of Canada in the most important civic duty,” Wedge told the jury after officially declaring a mistrial.

“On their behalf, I want to thank you for the care and attention you’ve given to this case,” she continued.

Carter’s reaction to the mistrial wasn’t immediately visible as he sat with his back to the gallery, however he was smiling as he was led out of the courtroom by sheriffs.

He will remain in custody until the Crown decides if it will try him for a second time.

Wong’s parents, who attended the trial at various times, were not present in the courtroom Tuesday.

During the trial, Crown prosecutors argued that Carter was the lone occupant of a burgundy Pontiac Montana van parked south of the intersection on the evening of Jan. 13, 2018.

The Crown argued Carter was there with the intent to protect his associate Matthew Navas-Rivas, who was at Indochine restaurant. Prosecutors said Carter returned fire when Whiteside began shooting at Navas-Rivas around 9:16 p.m., killing both Whiteside and Wong, who was riding in the back seat of his parents' car as they drove along Broadway.

Carter’s defence lawyer Richard Fowler told jurors there were "significant gaps" in time in the Crown’s theory.

Fowler also mentioned that the three bullet casings later found in the van were linked to a gun used in a September 2017 shooting in Vancouver, while Carter was living in Ontario.

During her final instructions to the jury, B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Wedge explained that even though the Crown does not believe Carter intended to harm or kill Wong, within the criminal code there is the “transferred intent rule,” which holds that when one’s intention to harm one person inadvertently causes another to person to be hurt, the person who caused the harm will still be held responsible.

Wedge told jurors that if they found that Carter did commit the second-degree murder of Whiteside, they must also convict him for the second-degree murder of Wong.

Wedge also gave the group the option to convict Carter of the lesser offence of manslaughter if they felt the Crown had proven all elements except for the intent to kill.

Ultimately, jurors were unable to reach a unanimous decision that the Crown had proven its case. With a mistrial declared, prosecutors must now decide whether to try Carter a second time.

With files from CTV News Vancouver's Ben Nesbit