Not guilty plea in 1978 slaying of Monica Jack

A man accused of the 1978 slaying of a 12-year-old girl pleaded not guilty on Tuesday to a charge of first-degree murder. The plea of Garry Taylor Handlen in the murder of Monica Rose Jack came just before jury selection began for his trial in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.

“Not guilty,” the accused said in a weak voice as he stood in the prisoner’s dock.

Several hundred people assembled at the Vancouver Law Courts were told that there was a need for a process called a challenge for cause, in which prospective jurors face several questions, because of the realistic possibility of bias against the accused as a result of pre-trial publicity.

B.C. Supreme Court Justice Austin Cullen told the jury panel that in deciding whether or not the Crown has proved the charge against Handlen beyond a reasonable doubt, jurors must judge the evidence without bias, prejudice or partiality.

Prospective jurors were asked whether they had read or heard details about the case in the media, with a number of them indicating they had not heard anything.

By mid-afternoon on Tuesday, four jurors had been selected. The jury selection is to could continue into Wednesday. The trial is expected to open Oct. 22 and run for about 10 weeks.

Handlen, who has been in custody since his arrest, was charged in December 2014. He was 67 at the time.

Monica Jack vanished while riding her bicycle near her Merritt-area home. Her remains were not found for 17 years.