In a virtual re-run of the Stanley-Boushie trial earlier this year, Hamilton man Peter Khill was found not guilty of murdering Jonathan Styres yesterday.
One major difference in this trial was that Khill made no bones about actually shooting Styres, who was trying to steal his pickup truck at the time. But Khill claimed that he was acting in self-defense, even though it is not clear to me why he felt himself mortally threatened, and the jury seems to have believed him. So, instead of calling 911, like most people probably would in the circumstances, he just shot the guy. Twice.
Crucially, the trial hung on the fact that Khill was an ex-army reservist, and that his army training automatically kicked in. So, the fact that the army turns out potential psychopaths and dumps them on the street is somehow a defense for an otherwise unjustified killing?
About the best that can said about this case is that it does not seem to have been racially motivated (unlike the Stanley-Boushie case). But it's still a pretty dark day for Canadian justice.
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