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Trial wraps up in teen stabbing case; decision set for December

Oct 4, 2018 | 6:05 PM

Closing arguments have been heard in the case involving a teenage boy accused of stabbing a girl at a rural bush party last year.

The boy, who was 16 at the time, is charged with aggravated assault and carrying a weapon for a dangerous purpose in connection with an incident in the RM of Buckland last October. His trial wrapped up Thursday at Prince Albert Provincial Court, following three days of evidence in which court heard that approximately 200 teens turned up for the party. Several fights took place and the party ended with the then-17-year-old girl being taken to hospital with multiple stab wounds in the early-morning hours of Oct. 15, 2017.

The names of the accused, or the alleged victim and underage witnesses in the matter cannot be published.

The defence declined to call any evidence at the trial. The Crown wrapped up its case Wednesday.

Court heard that the alleged victim also confronted two girls at the party. Witnesses said the boy got into two fights with other boys and later was seen being hit, punched and kicked by a group of girls.

Two boys testified they got into a physical fight with the accused youth after they saw him push the alleged victim. Another witness testified the boy punched the girl in the face as well. One witness said the boy was carrying a knife.

The court heard most of the youths at the party were drinking throughout the evening.

Crown Prosecutor Elizabeth Addabor said in her closing arguments Thursday that the boy wanted retaliation for getting beaten up at the party. Addabor said there was no question the girl was stabbed multiple times, pointing to medical evidence that showed she  lost about 20 per cent of her total blood level. The girl spent seven days in hospital following the incident and needed 57 staples to close her wounds.

Addabor also pointed to testimony from the girl, who said she felt a sharp pain in her back and then the accused spun her around as she walked past the bonfire the night of the incident. Addabor said the girl was able to provide a description of her attacker.

“Obviously her life was in danger,” Addabor said.“She sees his face in her nightmares, so she does remember who did this to her.”

But, defence lawyer Ron Parchomchuk said most of the teens at the party were intoxicated, and questioned the reliability of witness testimony during the trial. Parchomchuk told Provincial Court Judge Felicia Daunt that the alleged victim admitted to confronting two other girls at the party before arguing with the accused and suggested the girl is “not a very nice young lady.”

“She’s intoxicated, she’s grossly intoxicated, and she’s minimizing her level of intoxication because she’s minimizing everything that happened that night,” he said of the alleged victim.

“This is a girl who is clearly aggressive, violent [and] she didn’t want it known that she was beating up girls that night.”

Parchomchuk also questioned the testimony of some of the other witnesses at the trial.

“There’s too much alcohol going around here, there’s too much lying going on around here, that you don’t know what happened.”

The case is expected to come back to court in December for a decision in the matter.

 

Editor’s note: Comments are closed on this story as it remains before the courts .

 

Charlene.tebbutt@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @CharleneTebbutt