Lawyers express doubt over cause of death
Judge rules trial will proceed nonetheless
A woman whose body was stuffed into a shopping cart and abandoned in an alley had two causes of death, according to a medical examiner who completed an autopsy report in the case.
But defence lawyers for two women on trial for second-degree murder in the death of Andrea Marie Berg, 42, tried to argue Wednesday that only one cause — blunt trauma to Berg’s head — actually ended her life.
In a failed directed-verdict application, lawyers for Sophie Frenchman, 51, and Carrie Jones, 37, argued the allegations against their clients are related to the other cause of death — strangulation — and that the true fatal blow was the blunt trauma sustained after Berg was thrown out a window by John Kisil, who has already pleaded guilty to accessory after the fact to murder in Berg’s 2015 death.
Earlier in the trial, court heard evidence from Kisil — who is serving a five-year sentence — and Lana Pelletier, who pleaded guilty to second-degree murder and is serving a life sentence.
Pelletier testified she and Frenchman strangled Berg with a stereo cord, while Jones encouraged them and gave them advice.
Afterwards, she told court, they believed Berg was dead and contacted Kisil to dispose of the body. Berg was bound with duct tape, then pushed out a third-storey window.
Berg was placed in a shopping cart that was discovered by pedestrians in an alleyway near 113 Avenue and 124 Street on June 16, 2015.
Alberta’s assistant chief medical examiner, Dr. Cecilia Wu, gave evidence Tuesday about her report, which found the strangulation and head trauma could both have caused Berg’s death.
But on cross-examination by defence counsel Naeem Rauf and Rob Wachowich, when presented with a hypothetical series of events, Wu agreed it was more probable that the blunt trauma was what actually killed Berg, and that it is possible the strangulation alone may not have been fatal.
Responding to the defence application Wednesday, prosecutor Breena Smith said the Crown isn’t disputing that Berg ’s heart was still beating after the strangulation and before she sustained the head injury. Rather, she argued, Frenchman and Jones significantly contributed to the cause of death, and so the murder case should go forward.
Court of Queen’s Bench Justice John Little agreed, dismissing the application. Neither defendant elected to call any evidence. Closing arguments in the trial are expected Thursday.