Metchosin murder trial: One of accused no longer part of proceedings
The murder trial of two inmates accused of killing a Vancouver Island man after escaping a minimum security federal prison took a sudden turn this week.
Zachary Armitage and James Lee Busch are charged with killing 60-year-old Martin Payne in July 2019, a day after the pair walked away from William Head Institution, about eight kilometres from the victim's home in Metchosin.
On Tuesday, however, Justice David Crossin told the jury that Armitage will no longer be a part of the proceedings, telling them he has been dealt with separately, and that it would be inappropriate for them to speculate why that could be.
Meanwhile, Busch’s trial will proceed, and evidence against both men will continue to be presented.
Both men pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder when the five-week trial began on Nov. 14.
This week, the jury saw several surveillance videos of the two accused in the days after their escape from William Head Institution on July 7, 2019.
The first showed them driving Payne’s Ford pickup truck along a residential street in Oak Bay before parking it and walking away.
Another camera later captured the two men at the Victoria International Marina on July 9.
The video shows Const. Glenn Foley of the Victoria Police Department – who took the witness stand Thursday – approaching the two men, who were walking away from him.
Foley said once he identified himself as a police officer, they stopped and turned around.
He said he instantly recognized Armitage because of a tattoo on the inmate's neck, saying he had seen the two men’s mug shots that morning.
Foley called for backup, and the two were arrested without incident.
Payne was found dead in his home on July12, 2019. The Crown believes he was killed on July 8, after returning from his job as a mail carrier.
The court previously saw images of the 60-year-old lying in a puddle of blood in his bathroom, with a hatchet, a knife and a tape dispenser found nearby.
An RCMP forensics identification specialist previously testified that Armitage’s hand- and fingerprints were found on several objects in Payne’s home, including the tape dispenser.
Payne’s two daughters, Calla and Jessica, have sat in the front row of the gallery throughout the trial.
“It’s been a rollercoaster, obviously the whole situation is devastating to all of us,” Calla told reporters outside of B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver during the first week of the trial.
“Sitting in the courtroom is very difficult, but we're happy that we have each other and the support that we have and looking forward to seeing justice come for this,” said Calla.
Despite having to sit through disturbing images, some of which show their father the day he was found, the sisters have held strong.
While the experience in court may be painful, they said there were too many unanswered questions to not attend.
“Things are coming to light that I’ve been wondering about continually, non-stop, for the past three years,” said Jessica. “For me that’s my main reason."
“Also to be there for my dad, to show support for his memory.”
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Doctors say capital gains tax changes will jeopardize their retirement. Is that true?
The Canadian Medical Association asserts the Liberals' proposed changes to capital gains taxation will put doctors' retirement savings in jeopardy, but some financial experts insist incorporated professionals are not as doomed as they say they are.
Something in the water? Canadian family latest to spot elusive 'Loch Ness Monster'
For centuries, people have wondered what, if anything, might be lurking beneath the surface of Loch Ness in Scotland. When Canadian couple Parry Malm and Shannon Wiseman visited the Scottish highlands earlier this month with their two children, they didn’t expect to become part of the mystery.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
It's no secret that spring can be a tumultuous time for Canadian weather, and as an unseasonably mild El Nino winter gives way to summer, there's bound to be a few swings in temperature that seem out of the ordinary. From Ontario to the Atlantic, though, this week is about to feel a little erratic.
What a urologist wants you to know about male infertility
When opposite sex couples are trying and failing to get pregnant, the attention often focuses on the woman. That’s not always the case.
He replaced Mickey Mantle. Now baseball's oldest living major leaguer is turning 100
The oldest living former major leaguer, Art Schallock turns 100 on Thursday and is being celebrated in the Bay Area and beyond as the milestone approaches.
'It was instant karma': Viral video captures failed theft attempt in Nanaimo, B.C.
Mounties in Nanaimo, B.C., say two late-night revellers are lucky their allegedly drunken antics weren't reported to police after security cameras captured the men trying to steal a heavy sign from a downtown business.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.