I was a little surprised to see no discussion of BC’s pipeline shenanigans - is it not a story anywhere else in Canada?
Hi Cat! Glad to see you.
It’s been getting a fair bit of media and political attention here in Saskatchewan.
No, it’s in the papers here. I read about it everyday.
Can any of you law-talkin’ folks answer a question? I’ve been following the Gerald Stanley trial (shooting death of Colton Boushie), and am curious as to what if any lesser charges the jury might be able to convict Stanley of if they acquit on the 2nd degree murder. Everything I know about lesser included charges I learned from Law & Order and so it probably wrong with regards to Canadian criminal law.
I have some news - I was selected for the 2018 Invictus Games! I am super excited 
Congratulations, Poysyn!
The BC wine story is on the news on the radio here, though I listen to CBC so it might be more of a national news story (not a local Montreal one.)
That is really good news, Poysyn! Congrats!
Sydney! Wow, that will be an experience!
What’s your sport?
Given that the Games are in Sydney, I hope it’s one with skills transferable to escaping from venomous animals. 
Oh come on, the people in Sydney aren’t that bad!
Here’s where things get a little confusing - I don’t know yet. When you send in the application to Soldier On, you pick two sports (I picked running and archery. Running because I have done it before, albeit slowly and archery because it’s kind of badass).
In the follow-up paperwork “accepting the spot” you once again pick sports, this time three individual and three team sports. Now I don’t know which to pick! I have a great bike, good set of golf clubs, am totally comfortable swimming and have done CrossFit, so technically, I could do any of them (the nature of my injury is not physical), so I am tempted to say “Just plug me in where you have a gap!” I have 8 months to train. There are two lead-up training camps for all of the athletes (there are 40 of us, out of 700 that applied).
So…TBA?
I am happy to take suggestions. I am leaning toward cycling and archery now, because I could bike to work (21 kms each way) and have a great road bike…here are the sports (from the last ones):
- Archery (haven’t done for years, but loved it when I did it)
- Indoor Rowing (done a lot at CrossFit)
- Powerlifting (done a lot at CrossFit, but is not my favourite lift - chest press)
- Road Cycling (have the bike and everything I need)
- Sitting Volleyball (okay, I suck at team sports, but would be willing to try)
- Swimming (grew up with a backyard pool and I have a pool in my complex)
- Track and Field (mostly shot put, discus)
- Wheelchair basketball (never tried, but would be willing to do it)
- Running (I have run 4 half marathons, slowly, but finished. I should be able to get a time of about 2:15, if I trained properly. Never sprinted, but again would be intrigued to try.
and others TBA I have access to fantastic gyms and coaches, and am not held back by any physical issues… Any suggestions?
That’s super Poysyn?
I’m so happy for you!
I’d stay with archery!
You know we’re going to expect a “Poysyn goes to the Games” thread…
It seems you will need to learn a new version of ‘O Canada’ for those games.
I get around the issue of the new O Canada lyrics by singing it in French.
The first half of the anthem is always sung in French here in Eastern Ontario, so same issue. Actually, Montreal does the half-and-half thing all the time too, right?
Well done, Poysyn! And as has been stated, we will be expecting a “Poysyn Goes to the Games” thread.
I’ll give it a try.
Let’s start with some basic facts that are not in dispute: Bouchie and his friends entered onto Stanley’s property. Some sort of altercation developed. Stanley had a gun, which he held onto throughout. The gun went off. The altercation ended with Bouchie dead by gunshot.
What is at issue, is the question of how Bouchie was shot. Did Stanley intentionally shoot him, or did Stanley accidentally shoot him?
The Crown’s theory of the case is that Stanley intentionally shot Bouchie in the heat of the moment. This is where the second-degree murder charge comes from: there is no premeditation, as there would be for a first-degree charge; but there is intent to kill “in the heat of the moment.” If the Crown’s theory is correct, it would result in a second-degreee murder conviction.
But what if the Crown’s theory is incorrect, and the facts indicate that Bouchie’s death was accidental and lacking intent? The facts state that Stanley was involved somehow; should he just walk free if it was all an accident?
Here’s where the lesser included charge of manslaughter (accidental death caused by another person) comes in. Somehow, the altercation with an armed Stanley caused Bouchie’s death, and had the altercation with Stanley not developed, Bouchie would likely be alive today. If the facts show that the death was purely by accident, with no intent of any kind, the jury could deliver a verdict on the lesser included charge of manslaughter.
So although the Crown is pursuing a second-degree murder conviction, the jury does not have two possible choices of verdict (guilty of second-degree, or not guilty); rather, it has three:
– Guilty of second-degree murder
– Guilty of manslaughter
– Not guilty
Hope this helps to answer your question. I’m not sure how clear I’ve been however, so if you have any questions, feel free to ask.
That pretty much clears it up, thanks. I’ve heard some comments (from people who clearly aren’t lawyers) suggesting some sort of negligence verdict could be reached as a lesser charge than manslaughter, but I didn’t know if there was any basis for that. My own inclination as someone who’s read the reporting on the trial but not any transcripts of testimony is that the Crown hasn’t proven intent, but Stanley’s story of a hangfire is horribly implausible. Guns don’t work like that. I guess we’ll know soon enough how the jury sees it.
This case is pretty polarizing, which I do understand, in the local area. So much so that they were not confident they would get a fair trial? I guess we’ll see how things fall out.