Did Leslie Black change his mind about pleading guilty or did is lawyer fail him? That was the question in a Prince Albert, Sask. courtroom Thursday as the Crown and defence argued whether a man accused of attempted murder should be able to take back his guilty plea.
Black is accused of attacking Marlene Bird in Prince Albert, Sask. on June 1, 2014.
He asked for an expungement hearing after he recanted some parts of an agreed to statement of facts.
READ MORE: Leslie Black tries to take back guilty plea during expungement hearing
During the April 14 hearing, Black took the stand in his own defence, stating he agreed to the statement of facts “to get it done and over with” and pleaded guilty to attempted murder on the advice of his lawyer at the time on the understanding an aggravated assault charge would be dropped.
If the judge rules in Black’s favour, his guilty pleas will be expunged and the matter would return to square one. However, if the charges are not expunged, Black will go straight to sentencing.
The judge is expected to make a ruling on June 1.
Meaghan Craig was in court for final arguments and live-blogged the proceedings. You can also follow her on Twitter.