Thomas Ted Barrett murder trial judge allows video statement from dead witness
Yvonne LeBlanc-Smith | CBC News | Posted: February 4, 2016 10:00 AM | Last Updated: February 4, 2016
Sheryl Flynn told police Barrett confessed he strangled Brett Elizabeth MacKinnon
A Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge has ruled a videotaped statement a witness made to police will be allowed into evidence in the second-degree murder of Thomas Ted Barrett, even though the witness is now dead.
The statement from Sheryl Flynn implicates Barrett in the murder of 21-year-old Brett MacKinnon. Flynn told police Barrett confessed to her that he strangled MacKinnon, who was last seen in Glace Bay in 2006.
In her written decision, Justice Robin Gogan said the ultimate worth of the evidence remains to be determined. Flynn spoke to police in 2012, and died less than a year later of a drug overdose.
Testimony at Barrett's trial in Sydney wrapped up Thursday morning. Crown and defence lawyers will make closing arguments Friday.
On Thursday, a single witness was called to the stand. James Ryan Flynn is Sheryl Flynn's son. He testified that his mother got drugs from her boyfriend, Shawn Glazier.
Glazier, a witness for the defence, said Sheryl Flynn was not doing drugs when she was with him, and he didn't believe that she ever talked to Barrett about the MacKinnon murder.
In court on Wednesday, Barrett, 40, looked the worse for wear and appeared battered and bruised. He had abrasions all over his face, and his left ear was red and swollen.
The Department of Justice confirms there was a minor altercation between several inmates at the Cape Breton Correctional Facility Tuesday evening, but the names of those involved will not be released.
No significant injuries were reported. Cape Breton Regional Police are investigating.
CBC's Yvonne LeBlanc-Smith live blogged from court in Sydney.