New murder trial ordered for ex-soldier after charge stayed over court delays
TORONTO — Ontario’s top court has ordered a new murder trial for an ex-soldier who walked free because his case took too long to be heard.
The Crown had appealed a judge’s decision to stay a first-degree murder charge against Adam Picard under new time limits established by the Supreme Court of Canada last summer.
It also alleged Ontario Superior Court Justice Julianne Parfett mischaracterized the nature of the delays, failed to consider the complexity of the case and did not properly account for a transitional period in applying the new rules.
Picard was arrested in December 2012 in the killing of 28-year-old Fouad Nayel, who police believe died the day he went missing in June of that year.