A jury found a former Halifax medical student guilty of second-degree murder on Saturday in the 2015 shooting death of a fellow student whose body has never been found.
During his trial, William Sandeson had testified before a Nova Scotia Supreme Court jury he killed physics student Taylor Samson in self defence on Aug. 15, 2015, but the jury didn’t accept that claim.
“It appears the jury has rejected the self defence statement … and that’s why they came to the determination of a second-degree murder outcome,” said Crown prosecutor Carla Ball, in an interview outside court.
Before coming to the decision, jury members deliberated for about 23 hours, beginning on Thursday.
The lead juror first announced that Sandeson had been found not guilty of first-degree murder before declaring him guilty of the lesser charge, as Samson’s family members sat listening quietly.
“We wanted first (degree) murder, but we’re going to take what we can get,” Samson’s mother Linda Boutilier told reporters. “He (Sandeson) is evil. There’s a special place in hell for him.”
The six-week trial marked the second time Sandeson was tried for the crime. He was convicted of first-degree murder in 2017, but the verdict was overturned on appeal and a new trial was ordered in 2020.
Those convicted of second-degree murder face an automatic life sentence, but the presiding judge can set parole eligibility at between 10 and 25 years. Unlike first-degree murder, which involves a killing that is both planned and deliberate, second-degree murder is a deliberate killing that occurs without planning.
A conviction of first-degree murder brings an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for 25 years.
Sandeson has already been in jail for about seven-and-a-half years, which will reduce the length of time he has to serve before parole eligibility, said Crown prosecutor Kim McOnie.
The Crown had argued during the trial that Sandeson was motivated by greed to kill Samson, 22, and steal the nine kilograms of marijuana he had brought to Sandeson’s downtown apartment to sell.
During the trial, McOnie said Sandeson had planned to sell the stolen marijuana to clear a $78,000 debt just as he was starting medical school at Dalhousie.
The Crown lawyer said proof of Sandeson’s get-rich-quick scheme lay in a text he sent to his father a few months before the killing, saying the outstanding debt would be paid off by September. McOnie also pointed to other texts he sent soon after the shooting, including one to a friend that declared: “Student loan paid off. I’m squeaky clean now.”
McOnie also told the jury Sandeson had purchased cleaning products in anticipation of destroying evidence of a bloody crime scene.
“How many 22-year-old students do you know have seven litres of bleach in their apartment?” she asked, adding the evidence showed Sandeson had cleaned the entire apartment within two hours of the killing.
Testifying in his own defence, Sandeson rejected all of those arguments. He said he brought his 9-mm semi-automatic handgun to the drug deal to intimidate Samson, not to kill him.
“I pulled the trigger, but I never wanted to hurt anyone that night,” he told the jury.
He testified that he feared for his life when Samson lunged at him during an argument over payment.
Sandeson admitted to disposing of the body by dumping it in a tidal river that feeds the Bay of Fundy near Truro, N.S. He denied the Crown’s allegation that he dismembered the corpse to make it easier to handle. He said he panicked after the shooting, knowing he would face criminal charges for the death and the drug dealing.
His lawyer, Alison Craig, said her client knew his dream of becoming a doctor would be over if he called 911. “Drug dealers don’t become doctors,” she said.
Craig challenged the Crown’s assertion that Sandeson was motivated by greed and financial gain, arguing her client was financially well off. She said he had three part-time jobs, and his own drug-dealing business was pulling in about $8,000 a month.
“He had everything to look forward to in life,” Craig said. “He did not have the intent for murder.”
Craig also argued that the Crown’s claim that the killing was well-planned made no sense. She told the jury that her client had left his surveillance cameras on for most of that night, knowing that they would capture Samson’s arrival shortly before 10:30 p.m.
The jury did not hear a police interview with Sandeson in which he offered several different accounts of what happened to Samson, none of which involved a shooting in self-defence. In his final account, Sandeson told investigators three unidentified assailants in black bodysuits entered the apartment, shot Samson in the head and carried his body away.
Justice James Chipman ruled the evidence inadmissible on the grounds that Sandeson’s Charter rights had not been respected.
Chipman set a sentencing hearing for April 20 and 21, and Ball said the Crown will be seeking a sentence that is “above the minimum.”
Craig declined to comment outside court, noting Sandeson’s parole eligibility date will likely be a contested issue.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Feb. 18, 2023.
EDMONTON – Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his career as the New Jersey Devils closed out their Western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers on Monday.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored for the Devils (8-5-2) who have won three of their last four on the heels on a four-game losing skid.
The Oilers (6-6-1) had their modest two-game winning streak snapped.
Calvin Pickard made 13 stops between the pipes for Edmonton.
TAKEAWAYS
Devils: In addition to his goal, Bratt picked up his 12th assist of the young season to give him nine points in his last eight games and now 15 points overall. Nico Hischier remains in the team lead, picking up an assist of his own to give him 16 points for the campaign. He has a point in all but four games this season.
Oilers: Forward Leon Draisaitl was held pointless after recording six points in his previous two games and nine points in his previous four. Draisaitl usually has strong showings against the Devils, coming into the contest with an eight-game point streak against New Jersey and 11 goals in 17 games.
KEY MOMENT
New Jersey took a 2-0 lead on the power play with 3:26 remaining in the second period as Hischier made a nice feed into the slot to Bratt, who wired his third of the season past Pickard.
KEY RETURN?
Oilers star forward and captain Connor McDavid took part in the optional morning skate for the Oilers, leading to hopes that he may be back sooner rather than later. McDavid has been expected to be out for two to three weeks with an ankle injury suffered during the first shift of last Monday’s loss in Columbus.
OILERS DEAL FOR D-MAN
The Oilers have acquired defenceman Ronnie Attard from the Philadelphia Flyers in exchange for defenceman Ben Gleason.
The 6-foot-3 Attard has spent the past three season in the Flyers organization seeing action in 29 career games. The 25-year-old right-shot defender and Western Michigan University grad was originally selected by Philadelphia in the third round of the 2019 NHL Entry Draft. Attard will report to the Oilers’ AHL affiliate in Bakersfield.
UP NEXT
Devils: Host the Montreal Canadiens on Thursday.
Oilers: Host the Vegas Golden Knights on Wednesday.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Nov. 4, 2024.
KANSAS CITY, Mo. (AP) — Patrick Mahomes threw for 291 yards and three touchdowns, and Kareem Hunt pounded into the end zone from two yards out in overtime to give the unbeaten Kansas City Chiefs a 30-24 win over the Tampa Bay Buccaneers on Monday night.
DeAndre Hopkins had two touchdown receptions for the Chiefs (8-0), who drove through the rain for two fourth-quarter scores to take a 24-17 lead with 4:17 left. But then Kansas City watched as Baker Mayfield led the Bucs the other way in the final minute, hitting Ryan Miller in the end zone with 27 seconds to go in regulation time.
Tampa Bay (4-5) elected to kick the extra point and force overtime, rather than go for a two-point conversion and the win. And it cost the Buccaneers when Mayfield called tails and the coin flip was heads. Mahomes and the Chiefs took the ball, he was 5-for-5 passing on their drive in overtime, and Hunt finished his 106-yard rushing day with the deciding TD plunge.
Travis Kelce had 14 catches for 100 yards with girlfriend Taylor Swift watching from a suite, and Hopkins finished with eight catches for 86 yards as the Chiefs ran their winning streak to 14 dating to last season. They became the sixth Super Bowl champion to start 8-0 the following season.
Mayfield finished with 200 yards and two TDs passing for the Bucs, who have lost four of their last five.
It was a memorable first half for two players who had been waiting to play in Arrowhead Stadium.
The Bucs’ Rachaad White grew up about 10 minutes away in a tough part of Kansas City, but his family could never afford a ticket for him to see a game. He wound up on a circuitous path through Division II Nebraska-Kearney and a California junior college to Arizona State, where he eventually became of a third-round pick of Tampa Bay in the 2022 draft.
Two year later, White finally got into Arrowhead — and the end zone. He punctuated his seven-yard scoring run in the second quarter, which gave the Bucs a 7-3 lead, by nearly tossing the football into the second deck.
Then it was Hopkins’ turn in his first home game since arriving in Kansas City from a trade with the Titans.
The three-time All-Pro, who already had caught four passes, reeled in a third-down heave from Mahomes amid triple coverage for a 35-yard gain inside the Tampa Bay five-yard line. Three plays later, Mahomes found him in the back of the end zone, and Hopkins celebrated his first TD with the Chiefs with a dance from “Remember the Titans.”
Tampa Bay tried to seize control with consecutive scoring drives to start the second half. The first ended with a TD pass to Cade Otton, the latest tight end to shred the Chiefs, and Chase McLaughlin’s 47-yard field goal gave the Bucs a 17-10 lead.
The Chiefs answered in the fourth quarter. Mahomes marched them through the rain 70 yards for a tying touchdown pass, which he delivered to Samaje Perine while landing awkwardly and tweaking his left ankle, and then threw a laser to Hopkins on third-and-goal from the Buccaneers’ five-yard line to give Kansas City the lead.
Tampa Bay promptly went three-and-out, but its defence got the ball right back, and this time Mayfield calmly led his team down field. His capped the drive with a touchdown throw to Miller — his first career TD catch — with 27 seconds to go, and Tampa Bay elected to play for overtime.
UP NEXT
Buccaneers: Host the San Francisco 49ers on Sunday.
NASHVILLE, Tenn. (AP) — Darcy Kuemper made 16 saves for his first shutout of the season and 32nd overall, helping the Los Angeles Kings beat the Nashville Predators 3-0 on Monday night.
Adrian Kempe had a goal and an assist and Anze Kopitar and Kevin Fiala also scored. The Kings have won two of their last three.
Juuse Saros made 24 saves for the Predators. They are 1-2-1 in their last four.
Kopitar opened the scoring with 6:36 remaining in the opening period. Saros denied the Kings captain’s first shot, but Kopitar collected the rebound below the goal line and banked it off the netminder’s skate.
Fiala, a former Predator, made it 2-0 35 seconds into the third.
The Kings held Nashville to just three third-period shots on goal, the first coming with 3:55 remaining and Saros pulled for an extra attacker.
Elsewhere in the NHL on Monday:
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DEVILS 3 OILERS 0
EDMONTON, Alta. (AP) — Jake Allen made 31 saves for his second shutout of the season and 26th of his NHL career, helping the New Jersey Devils close their western Canadian road trip with a 3-0 victory over the Edmonton Oilers.
Jesper Bratt had a goal and an assist and Stefan Noesen and Timo Meier also scored. The Devils improved to 8-5-2. They have won three of their last four after a four-game skid.
Calvin Pickard made 13 saves for Edmonton. The Oilers had won two straight.
