OTTAWA — The Supreme Court of Canada has ruled that just because a killer concealed the body, cleaned up the crime scene and lied to police, the actions do not necessarily prove there was intent to commit murder.
The country's top court has upheld an appeal court ruling that overturned the 2011 second-degree murder conviction of Jason Rodgerson in the death of 21-year-old Amber Young in Oshawa, Ont.
A new trial will be held for Rodgerson, who has admitted he killed Young in 2008 during a drunken, drug-fuelled tryst but claims it was in self defence.
Justice Michael Moldaver, writing the Supreme Court judgment, agreed with an appeal court that the trial judge did not properly instruct the jury on how to weigh the evidence.
The Supreme Court says the trial judge should not have instructed the jury that Rodgerson's attempt to flee police and his lies after Young's death were evidence of an intent to commit murder.
The top court also found that the trial judge's day-long, 200-page charge to the jury was confusing and failed to properly explain how the jurors should assess Rodgerson burying the young mother in a shallow grave in his backyard and using bleach to clean up the crime scene.
