Gervais to be tried for murder by judge alone

Former fugitive Nathan Gervais won’t have to face a jury in his upcoming trial for the murder of a Calgary man.

Prosecutor Shane Parker confirmed Friday the Crown has agreed to permit Gervais to be tried by a Court of Queen’s Bench judge sitting without a jury.

Defence lawyer Alain Hepner had sought that concession from the prosecution.

Parker told Justice Keith Yamauchi that trial counsel Ken McCaffrey “is consenting to a re-election to a judge-alone trial.”

Under the Criminal Code, an accused person charged with most offences has the right to select whether to be tried by a judge sitting alone, or a judge and jury.

But for a select group of offences, including murder, inciting to mutiny, piracy and alarming Her Majesty, among others, the Crown has to consent to a judge-alone trial.

Hepner said the concession should drop a week from the time needed for Gervais’ trial to be completed.

Gervais, 23, is charged with firstdegree murder in the Nov. 23, 2013, stabbing death of Lukas StrasserHird.

He was to stand trial in May 2016, with four co-accused, but failed to show up.

The trial proceeded without him, and two of the four, Assmar Shlah and Franz Cabrera, were convicted of second-degree murder — convictions currently under appeal.

A third accused, Joch Pouk, was convicted of manslaughter, while the fourth, Jordan Liao, was found not guilty.

Gervais was returned to Canada last month following a nearly twoyear run from the law after he was found in Vietnam.

Strasser-Hird, 18, was beaten and fatally stabbed behind a Beltline-area nightclub after he was swarmed by a large group of men.

Gervais is scheduled to stand trial in May 2019.

He remains in custody pending that hearing.