Boushie shooting was ‘freak accident’, Stanley will testify: Defence
Gerald Stanley is expected to testify in his own defence, his lawyer told the jury at Stanley’s ongoing murder trial.
Stanley has pleaded not guilty to a charge of second-degree murder in connection with the shooting death of 22-year-old Colten Boushie, which occurred Aug. 9, 2016. The trial began Jan. 29 at the Battleford Court of Queen’s Bench.
This morning, Feb. 5, the 12 jurors heard the opening statement of defence lawyer Scott Spencer, who called the shooting a “freak accident” which occurred “in the course of an unimaginably scary situation.”
Spencer said Stanley was justified when he armed himself with a handgun and fired warning shots during his confrontation of Boushie and the other occupants of the badly-damaged Ford Escape that drove onto his farmyard. Several occupants testified the group was highly intoxicated and attempted to steal a truck from a previously-visited farm.