Trial begins Monday in murder of mom, daughter
The trial of double-murder suspect Edward Downey begins Monday in connection with the slaying of a Calgary mom and her young daughter.
A 12-member jury, selected along with two alternates on Wednesday, is expected to hear an opening address from Crown prosecutor Carla MacPhail after receiving legal instructions from Justice Beth Hughes.
Prosecutors MacPhail and Ryan Jenkins, along with defence counsel Gavin Wolch and Meryl Friedland, spent the bulk of the day Wednesday picking the 12 Calgarians who will hear the case.
If any of those individuals show up for court Monday and reveal they are unable to sit for the scheduled three-week hearing, then one of two alternates also selected will move in to replace them.
If all selected jurors are able to preside over the trial, the alternates will be dismissed.
Under Canadian law, longer trials can be heard by up to 14 jurors but only a maximum of 12 can deliberate the case. In this instance only 12 will hear the evidence, but as few as 10 jurors can decide an accused’s fate.
Downey, 48, faces two charges of first-degree murder in connection with the July 2016 deaths of Sara Baillie and her five-year-old daughter, Taliyah Marsman.
Baillie was found dead in her Panamount Boulevard N.W. home on July 11 and an Amber Alert was issued when her daughter could not be located.
The girl’s body was found on a rural property east of Chestermere three days later.
If convicted as charged, Downey would face an automatic life sentence with a parole ineligibility of as much as 50 years.