Judge dismisses life sentence challenge in Shawn Yorke murder case
One of the men convicted for first-degree murder in the death of Shawn Yorke has been sentenced to life in prison with no possibility of parole for 25 years.
A judge found Kenneth Morrison, 30, and Mowafag Saboon, 27, guilty of first-degree murder on Nov. 30, 2021.
Morrison and Saboon were sentenced one month later, but Morrison filled a constitutional challenge for the mandatory life sentence.
Brendan Thomas, the Assistant Crown Attorney, told CTV News on Thursday the court dismissed that constitutional challenge.
Yorke died during a botched robbery on July 8, 2018. Court heard that he sold drugs out of his home on Elm Ridge Drive, and Morrison, Saboon and two teens planned to steal from him. Justice Sloan said Morrison pointed a gun at Yorke and unlawfully confined him before Saboon fired the fatal shot into Yorke's chest.
After the verdict, Morrison's lawyer expressed her disappointment.
"Our client has never minimized his role in this offence, but it is our legal position that he is not guilty of murder," said defence attorney Jessyca Greenwood.
The two teens involved in Yorke's death pleaded guilty to manslaughter in 2019 and were sentenced to three years behind bars.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Cuban government apologizes to Montreal-area family after delivering wrong body
Cuba's foreign affairs minister has apologized to a Montreal-area family after they were sent the wrong body following the death of a loved one.
What is changing about Canada's capital gains tax and how does it impact me?
The federal government's proposed change to capital gains taxation is expected to increase taxes on investments and mainly affect wealthy Canadians and businesses. Here's what you need to know about the move.
'Anything to win': Trudeau says as Poilievre defends meeting protesters
Prime Minister Justin Trudeau is accusing Conservative Leader Pierre Poilievre of welcoming 'the support of conspiracy theorists and extremists,' after the Conservative leader was photographed meeting with protesters, which his office has defended.
Fair in Ontario, flurries in Labrador: Weather systems make for an erratic spring
"It's a bit of a complicated pattern; we've got a lot going on," said Jennifer Smith of the Meteorological Service of Canada in an interview with CTVNews.ca on Wednesday. "[As is] typical with weather, all of these things are related."
Quebec nurse had to clean up after husband's death in Montreal hospital
On a night she should have been mourning, a nurse from Quebec's Laurentians region says she was forced to clean up her husband after he died at a hospital in Montreal.
Police tangle with students in Texas and California as wave of campus protest against Gaza war grows
Police tangled with student demonstrators in Texas and California while new encampments sprouted Wednesday at Harvard and other colleges as school leaders sought ways to defuse a growing wave of pro-Palestinian protests.
Bank of Canada officials split on when to start cutting interest rates
Members of the Bank of Canada's governing council were split on how long the central bank should wait before it starts cutting interest rates when they met earlier this month.
Northern Ont. lawyer who abandoned clients in child protection cases disbarred
A North Bay, Ont., lawyer who abandoned 15 clients – many of them child protection cases – has lost his licence to practise law.
'My stomach dropped': Winnipeg man speaks out after being criminally harassed following single online date
A Winnipeg man said a single date gone wrong led to years of criminal harassment, false arrests, stress and depression.