WINNIPEG — As the trial for the 2012 Salisbury House shooting heads into its second week, jurors heard a DNA expert describe what was gathered from different pieces of evidence.
Court hear DNA from the accused, Devin Hall, was tested against samples from evidence found at a nearby scene including two black gloves and a white shirt.
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One DNA expert said she tested multiple samples from all three exhibits and found multiple DNA profiles on each. However, the major DNA profile in each case matched Hall’s.
Michelle Scott-Mascioli said “no one else was able to be identified.”
In one sample taken from the shirt, the probability of it matching anyone else was 1 in 4.2 quadrillion.
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While there is no such thing as an absolute match in DNA science, each match has a probability attached to it to better understand the likelihood of it coming from another person.
In one of the samples obtained from the right hand glove, there was DNA from at least three different individuals. Again, Mascioli said Hall’s DNA profile made up the major component.
In that instance, she said there was a 1 in 8.8 trillion chance of it matching another person (based on the population database the RCMP use).
READ MORE: ‘It felt like an eternity’: witness recalls spray of gunshots during Salisbury House murder trial
During cross-examination defence attorney Martin Glazer questioned the witness on the other partial DNA profiles that were found.
WATCH: Gunman enters Salisbury House and opens fire
Mascioli made it clear that she could not comment on when, how or where the DNA could have been deposited. She could only say there was other DNA present on the pieces of evidence.
The shooting claimed the life of 23-year-old Jeffrey Lau and injured his best friend.
Hall has pleaded not guilty to both first-degree and attempted murder.
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