By Taylor MacPherson

Closing arguments heard in Herron/Johnson murder trial

Feb 13, 2017 | 4:00 PM

The jury heard closing arguments today in the trial of two Prince Albert men accused of shooting a 17-year-old.

Orren Johnson, 28, and Jordan Herron, 23, were charged with first-degree murder for their alleged involvement in the April, 2014 shooting death of Clayton James Bear.

Senior Crown Prosecutor Jeff Lubyk reminded the jury of several key moments during testimony, including Miranda Soderberg’s claims that she saw Johnson holding a gun, and that Johnson later ordered her to keep her mouth shut.

“This case is about jealousy and bravado,” Lubyk said.

According to Lubyk, the co-accused felt disrespected when their female companions, including Soderberg who was dating Herron at the time, left to attend a different party. When Herron and Johnson tried to join them at the party, Lubyk said, they were chased out at knifepoint, giving them a clear motive.

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“Mr. Herron and Mr. Johnson attended there basically taking a gun to a knife fight,” Lubyk said.

Herron’s lawyer Mary McAuley said the suggested motive was simply speculation by Soderberg.

“There is no merit to this jealousy motive,” McAuley said. “It was an assumption.”

McAuley noted that while witnesses placed her client at the scene, the witnesses were intoxicated and no evidence suggested Herron was the shooter or had any involvement in planning the attack.

“There is no evidence before the court that Jordan Herron shot Clayton Bear,” McAuley said.

Johnson’s defence lawyer Lisa Trach pointed out the lack of physical evidence in the case, and reinforced McAuley’s assertion that many of the witnesses were unreliable.

“Witnesses don’t always tell the truth,” she said. “You have heard no physical evidence putting Mr. Johnson at the scene of this incident.”

Trach warned the jury of the dangers of preconceived notions, and used the wrongful conviction of David Milgaard as an example.

“I need you to recognize that you feel bad for Clayton Bear and his family,” Trach told the jury. “You must remove those feelings from your decision-making process.”

Judge Jeffrey Kalmakoff said the jury will receive their instructions and begin deliberations tomorrow morning. The trial has been running since Jan. 23 at Prince Albert’s Court of Queen’s Bench.

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews