Defence in Lawlor trial suggests reasonable doubt in murder case
The defence in the Derrick Lawlor murder trial attempted to raise questions for jurors by suggesting Mark McCreadie may have died after a botched robbery or cardiac arrest after having a scarf tied around his neck in an attempt to increase sexual pleasure.
Defence lawyer Stephen Proudlove, addressing the jury Friday in his closing arguments, suggested there is enough reasonable doubt for the jury to find Lawlor not guilty of first-degree murder.
Proudlove urged the jurors not to isolate particular statements but rather consider all the evidence in context.
Lawlor, 56, of Waterloo is charged with killing McCreadie, 50, of Kitchener in the woods on the edge of Victoria Park on April 9, 2014.
Jurors have heard that Lawlor and McCreadie were involved in three-way sex with another man, John Davie, in the park that night. Davie said he left the encounter after having oral sex and when Lawlor tied a scarf around his neck.
The Crown’s position is that Lawlor and McCreadie were left alone and Lawlor stabbed McCreadie below his belly button and then strangled him with a scarf.
Proudlove said the discovery of McCreadie’s body in the wooded area on the fringes of Victoria Park should raise questions.
He said the area is known for “nefarious” and “unsavoury” activity, including drug trafficking. He also said gay men meet up there for sexual encounters.
Proudlove said Lawlor is an openly gay man and was comfortable with being gay.
“Homophobia has no place in this trial,” he said. “He isn’t a person who hated gay men. He is not homophobic.”
Proudlove said the fact nothing was found on McCreadie’s body except clothes should raise doubts. There was no jewelry, no money, no wallet, and his keys were found about 25 metres away.
A smoker, McCreadie didn’t have cigarettes or a lighter on him, Proudlove said.
“I would suggest robbery is an inference you can draw because nothing was found on his body,” Proudlove told the jury.
Proudlove said when the coroner arrived at the park at about 5:30 to 5:45 p.m. on April 10, 2014, rigor mortis was fully developed, suggesting McCreadie was “well dead”
and had been deceased for some time.
Proudlove said video surveillance from McCabe’s Irish Pub and Grill in downtown Kitchener showed Lawlor there on April 9 at about 11:30 p.m.
Proudlove said there is “considerable” reasonable doubt that Lawlor was in the park when McCreadie died.
He reminded the jury that “probable guilt” was not sufficient to find Lawlor guilty of murder.
“If he likely or probably did it, you will have to find him not guilty. It ends there,” Proudlove said.
He said jurors would have to consider intent to kill, was the act planned and deliberate, was the killing lawful and whether Lawlor had the state of mind to murder someone.
“The question of Lawlor’s state of mind is very important,” he said.
“He was agitated, nervous and frustrated,” said Proudlove, referring to Lawlor not being able to get into a residential psychiatric program. He had lost his job at the University of Waterloo.
Proudlove said the practice of erotic asphyxiation — an attempt to obstruct the flow of oxygen to the brain — is dangerous. The jury heard that Lawlor wanted to increase sexual pleasure and placed a scarf around Davie’s neck but it was loosened when Davie asked Lawlor what he was doing.
Proudlove said if the jury has doubt on the intent to kill then “he is not guilty of firstdegree murder but guilty of manslaughter.”
Proudlove pointed to testimony by the forensic pathologist who said the cause of death was “external neck compression.” But she could not say how the compression killed McCreadie, he said.
Proudlove suggested cardiac arrest could have led to his death. He suggested there was no evidence of struggle or attempt by McCreadie to get the scarf off his neck.
“There is no evidence under McCreadie’s fingernails that he clawed at or scratched his neck,” he said.
Proudlove also suggested that Lawlor checking for news on his phone was not unusual.
Court heard that Lawlor conducted various Google searches on his phone looking for news on the body in the park and visited the sites of the Waterloo Region Record, CTV Kitchener and CBC Kitchener-Waterloo.
Proudlove said he also did other searches unrelated to news.
“Is it so unusual for someone to check news on their phone?” he said. “The evidence is not conclusive that he sought out news because he was involved in the incident on the 9th.” “It’s a stretch,” he said. Proudlove said Lawlor reached out to police after the body was found in the park. He consented to taking a DNA sample and having police search his home.
Lawlor’s statements led police to interview John Davie.
Proudlove urged the jury not to view Lawlor’s statement to police as a confession. Instead, Lawlor wanted help and wanted to seek medical attention for his mental state.
“He did not call and say ‘I did this,’ ” he said.
Proudlove said Lawlor spoke of fragmented memories and of blood on his hands yet video surveillance didn’t show any blood.
Proudlove said a friend, Randy Scott, testified that he was worried about his friend and that he may be having “incorrect memories.”
“I confidently suggest there are issues with what Derrick Lawlor recounted to other people for whatever reason,” he said.
Justice Gerry Taylor will address the jury on Tuesday morning and the jury will begin its deliberations that day.