A B.C. man who was found guilty of second-degree murder in the shooting death of his partner in 1994 is now appealing for DNA evidence in the case to be re-examined.
Wade Skiffington was accused of murdering Wanda Martin in Richmond, B.C., soon after the couple moved to the province, and was convicted of second-degree murder in 2001 based on what his lawyers say was a false confession during a so-called Mr. Big police sting.
Martin’s 18-month-old son was found unharmed with her body.
In December 2022, the federal Minister of Justice determined there was “reasonable basis” to find that a miscarriage of justice “likely occurred” in connection with Skiffington’s conviction.
The matter was referred for a new appeal and Skiffington has been out on bail since December 2022.
He applied to have items seized by the RCMP in 1994 tested for DNA, including shell casings found at the scene and a DNA extract taken from swabs of those casings in 2019.
“The identity of the shooter was the primary issue at trial,” the court filing reads.
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“The appellant submits that DNA evidence obtained from the shell casings may assist in demonstrating that his conviction reflects a miscarriage of justice.”
Crown and defence lawyers have agreed that certain material should be released to the British Columbia Institute of Technology for DNA testing.
The document states that the casings were not tested for DNA in 1994. They were tested for DNA in 2019 at the RCMP’s national forensics laboratory for DNA analysis. Human DNA was obtained from the outer surface but did not meet the minimum requirement for further processing at the RCMP lab.
However, BCIT’s lab has a lower threshold for testing purposes and Dr. Dean Hildebrand, a forensic DNA consultant with BCIT believes there may be a sufficient amount to undergo testing.
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