Saturday, April 08, 2006

Press Clippings--Part XXXIII

Morin-Cousineau murder trial stalls
Jury fails to reach verdict on 1st day of deliberations in murder trial

The Gazette, April 08, 2006
The jurors in Martin Morin-Cousineau's trial for second-degree murder retired to their hotel rooms last night without reaching a verdict.

They are to reconvene at 9 a.m. today to deliberate on what happened Oct. 3, 2004, when Morin-Cousineau, 32, had an argument with his live-in girlfriend, Kelly-Anne Drummond, 24.
During the three-week trial, the court heard that while Morin-Cousineau was eating dinner in the living room, he threw his hands up in frustration, causing his utensils to fly into the air.

Drummond, who had been standing in the kitchen, was found lying in a pool of blood, a 9.5-centimetre knife blade in the back of her neck. The defence contends she died accidentally; the Crown argues the accused killed her deliberately because she wanted to leave him.

At one point yesterday, the jury, judge and lawyers in the case were recalled to Courtroom 3.11 at the Montreal courthouse. But the jurors just wanted to know if they could have a 4.5-metre measuring tape, an extension cord and a better system for listening to the 911 call Morin-Cousineau made on Oct. 3, 2004.

They also wanted to review videos of an experiment in which knives were thrown at a pig's carcass, and to see the video of Morin-Cousineau's statement to police, in which he indicated the movement of his hands when he shouted "Enough!" at Drummond.

Superior Court Justice Claude Champagne allowed them the extension cord.

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