Quebec Crown appeals decision to stay murder charge of convicted killer Ryan Wolfson
Wolfson is 2nd man in Quebec to have a murder charge thrown out of court for unreasonable delays
Quebec's Director of Criminal and Penal Prosecutions is appealing a decision to stay a first-degree murder charge against Ryan Wolfson, accused of killing a Saint-Sauveur man in 2012.
Wolfson was the second accused murderer in Quebec whose trial was stayed based on the Jordan ruling, a 2016 Supreme Court ruling that imposes deadlines on the justice system to avoid unreasonable trial delays.
Last month, Quebec Superior Court Justice Guy Cournoyer ruled that there were too many unreasonable delays in Wolfson's judicial proceedings.
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The Jordan ruling states that trials involving less serious offences should be wrapped up within 18 months of the suspect being charged. It set a 30-month deadline on cases involving more serious charges, including murder.
Wolfson was facing a first-degree murder charge in connection with the death of Pierre-Paul Fortier, who was killed in October 2012.
Wolfson's murder trial was set to begin in September — almost 60 months after Wolfson's arrest.
Already serving life sentence
Wolfson is already behind bars, sentenced to life in prison last fall for the first-degree murder of Frederick Murdock, who was also killed in October 2012.
He was also found guilty of two attempted murder charges.
2nd appeal by Crown
This is the Quebec Crown's second appeal of a stay of proceedings involving a murder charge.
Last month, the Crown filed its intent to appeal with the Quebec Court of Appeal in the case against Sivaloganathan Thanabalasingham.
Thanabalasingham was facing a second-degree murder charge in the 2012 death of his wife, Anuja Baskaran.
Thanabalasingham was arrested in August 2012 and spent five years behind bars awaiting trial.
His trial had been set to start in April 2017.
Despite the stay of his murder charge, the 31-year-old from Sri Lanka, who has permanent resident status in Canada, is still in detention. He is facing deportation for crimes committed in 2011 and 2012.
With files from Radio-Canada