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N.B. Appeal Court orders new murder trial for woman convicted in stabbing death

Oct 24, 2019 | 10:10 AM

FREDERICTON — New Brunswick’s Court of Appeal has ordered a new trial for a young woman convicted in the brutal slaying of a Moncton teen who was stabbed about 200 times.

A spokeswoman confirmed today that the court overturned Marissa Shephard’s convictions for first-degree murder and arson in the 2015 death of 18-year-old Baylee Wylie.

During a trial last year, court heard that Wylie’s body was found in Shephard’s burned-out townhouse on Dec. 17, 2015 after the victim had been tied to a chair, beaten and stabbed repeatedly.

A jury convicted Shephard after just four hours of deliberation, and she was later sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

Shephard, who was 20 at the time of her arrest, was the third person convicted of murdering Wylie.

Devin Morningstar was found guilty of first-degree murder in 2016, while Tyler Noel pleaded guilty in May 2017 to second-degree murder and arson with disrespect for human life. Both received life sentences.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Oct. 24, 2019.

 

The Canadian Press