Murder charge upgraded to 1st-degree for man accused of killing second woman in a park

A Calgary man accused of murdering a woman in a park three years after he was released from jail for a similar killing saw his charges upgraded Friday.

Originally charged with second-degree murder, Christopher Dunlop, 50, will now go on trial on a charge of first-degree murder. 

Dunlop is accused of killing Judy Maerz, 58, whose body was found in Deerfoot Athletic Park in northeast Calgary, on Feb. 16, 2023. 

At the time, police said the body had been set on fire after the killing in what officers believe was an attempt to cover up the homicide. 

Two weeks later, police laid a charge of second-degree murder against Dunlop.

The killing took place three years after Dunlop was released from prison after serving a 13-year sentence for killing Laura Furlan, 38.

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In 2009, Furlan was found strangled in Fish Creek Provincial Park. 

Dunlop confessed to choking Furlan after having sex with her. 

He pleaded guilty to manslaughter and was handed a 13-year prison term in 2015. At the time, Dunlop received 6½ years credit for the time he'd already served. 

At the time of Dunlop's arrest in Maerz's death, police said there were "a lot of similarities" in the two homicide investigations.

First-degree murder charges are laid when police and prosecutors believe they can prove the killing was planned, that it happened in the course of a person being forcibly confined or if it happened during a sexual assault. 

Dunlop is set to go on trial next June.