Two young offenders, aged 15 and 17, were expected to be sentenced Monday morning for manslaughter relating to the death of 45-year-old Shawn Yorke.
But neither they, nor Yorke's family, got any kind of closure.
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A challenge to a publication ban, which would have sealed the court file, was originally supposed to be heard at 10 a.m.
If the order is granted, the facts surrounding what happened to Yorke would be kept secret for now.
CTV News has challenged the application.
“A publication ban is never a slam dunk because we have a constitutional presumption of open courts,” explains media lawyer Ryder Gilliland, who is representing CTV and the Waterloo Region Record.
The Crown has requested a publication ban and sealing order.
The Crown’s position is that the information could taint the trials of two adults: Mowafag Saboon, 24, and Kenneth Morrison, 27. Both are charged with first-degree murder in connection with the death of Shawn Yorke.
“There’s no trial date set so any issue about trial fairness is entirely speculative,” Gilliland explains.
Yorke was killed in his home exactly one year ago, in what police called at the time, a targeted shooting.
The two youths charged in this case were also charged with first-degree murder, but they pleaded guilty to the lesser charge of manslaughter.
Yorke’s family and friends filled the Kitchener courthouse on Monday, declining to comment on the legal wranglings.
They did say, though, that knowing how he died may bring some closure.
The hearing on the publication ban is expected to take place in two weeks.
