Crown won't appeal Mark Grant acquittal in Candace Derksen slaying

Years of legal proceedings for Mark Edward Grant in the death of a Winnipeg teenager in 1984 have now come to an end.

The Crown has decided not to appeal the acquittal of Mark Edward Grant, who was found not guilty last month of second-degree murder in the death of Candace Derksen.

Candace was last seen while walking home from school at the age of 13, and her frozen body — with her feet and hands tied — was found six weeks later in an industrial shed.

A new trial was held this year and Court of Queen's Bench Justice Karen Simonsen ruled the DNA evidence was flawed.

A written statement from Manitoba Justice says the Crown will not appeal that verdict, but offers no details.

"This determination was reached after a careful review of the evidence and Justice Simonsen's decision by both the Crowns assigned to the prosecution and Manitoba Prosecution Service's appeal unit," the statement said.

Candace's disappearance gripped the city and a large public search was launched.

Grant, now 54, was unknown to the Derksen family. He had a criminal record at the time that included sexual assaults, and was convicted of other crimes before his 2007 arrest. In one case in 1994, he was convicted of a sexual assault that occurred shortly after he had been released from custody on a previous conviction.

Grant's lawyer, Saul Simmonds, said in his closing arguments that DNA samples the Crown had relied on were so tiny as to be infinitesimal, and could be from one of the many people who had visited the shed where Derksen's body was found.

Cliff and Wilma Derksen said last month they continue to believe Grant killed their daughter but after three decades, they did not want the Crown to appeal.

The Derksens have worked on several projects in their daughter's name, including Candace House, a home-like resource centre for victims of crime that is being built a short walk from the Winnipeg court house.