Murder suspect stays behind bars despite Covid-19-related delay

Despite the postponement of his jury trial because of the ongoing pandemic, suspected murderer Scott Big Crow will remain detained pending trial, a judge ruled Tuesday.

Court of Queen’s Bench Justice Kim Nixon said Big Crow’s lawyer, Dale Fedorchuk, hadn’t met the onus on the defence to establish he is a suitable candidate for bail.

“In conclusion, I must dismiss Mr. Big Crow’s application for judicial interim release,” Nixon said, at the end of her lengthy decision which was twice interrupted by technical glitches which prevented Big Crow from hearing her comments while connected via CCTV from the Calgary Remand Centre.

At Fedorchuk’s request, Nixon imposed a publication ban on the bail hearing, which included submissions by the defence and Crown prosecutor Lori Chambers last week along with the judge’s reasons.

Big Crow is charged with second-degree murder and committing an indignity to a body in connection with the May 3, 2018 killing of his relative, Keith Big Crow, on the Tsuut’ina Nation.

The dead man’s body was discovered three days later and the accused was charged in October 2018.

Fedorchuk had sought Big Crow’s release because his jury trial, which was supposed to begin Monday, was postponed due to physical-distancing measures that prevent such hearings from proceeding.

The lawyer earlier indicated he anticipates making an application for a judicial stay for unreasonable delay after the assigned trial judge, Justice David Labrenz, refused to allow the case to proceed before him this month without a jury.

A date for a week of pretrial motions tentatively has been set for Aug. 10.