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Vader denied a new trial

The Alberta Court of Appeal has rejected Travis Vader’s bid for a new trial after he appealed his manslaughter conviction in the deaths of two St. Albert seniors.
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Travis Vader, convicted of killing St. Albert's Lyle and Marie McCann, will not be granted a new trial.

The Alberta Court of Appeal has rejected Travis Vader’s bid for a new trial after he appealed his manslaughter conviction in the deaths of two St. Albert seniors. 

"We see no prejudice having befallen the appellant as a consequence of the trial judge's analysis, and no benefit in a retrial to test again whether the appellant should have been convicted of manslaughter," the court of appeal said in a written decision on Friday. 

Vader was convicted of manslaughter in 2016 in the deaths of St. Albert's Lyle and Marie McCann.

Vader appealed his conviction on many grounds, including that the judge convicted Vader on only circumstantial evidence; that the judge erred in failing to order a stay of proceedings as a result of undue delay perpetrated by the police and Crown; and that the judge erred in law by making findings of fact in both his reasons for conviction and sentencing that were unreasonable and not supportable by evidence.

The defence team also cited an error when the judge used an unconstitutional section of the Criminal Code, section 230, and said the judge erred by declining to order a mistrial after improperly convicting Vader under the zombie law.

The criminal trial for the disappearance and death of the McCanns spanned six years and was finally wrapped up with a life sentence on Sept. 15, 2016.

The McCann couple was last seen filling their motorhome with gas in St. Albert on July 3, 2010, before setting off on a planned trip to visit with family and camp on the West Coast. Their burned motorhome was found near the Minnow Lake campground, southeast of Edson, two days later. Their bodies have never been recovered.

Vader was convicted of second degree murder by Court of Queen's Bench Justice Denny Thomas in the deaths of the McCanns. Thomas relied on a section of the Criminal Code, which had been deemed unconstitutional by the courts 26 years earlier. The verdict was eventually substituted for two counts of manslaughter.

Vader was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for seven years.

On Jan. 27, 2017, Vader's defence team, headed by Brian Beresh, filed a notice of appeal. The document states that if a new trial is ordered, the defence requests the trial be heard by a judge and jury. The original trial was heard by a Queen's Bench judge alone.


Jennifer Henderson

About the Author: Jennifer Henderson

Jennifer Henderson is the editor of the St. Albert Gazette and has been with Great West Media since 2015
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