New trial ordered for former boxing champ accused of violent break-in at Cole Harbour home

Nova Scotia’s Court of Appeal has ordered a new trial for the man acquitted in a Cole Harbour home invasion that left a woman paralyzed.

Markel Jason Downey was facing 28 charges, including three counts of attempted murder, that stemmed from 2014 incident in Cole Harbour.

READ MORE: Markel Jason Downey acquitted of attempted murder charges

It was alleged that Downey and three others broke into a home on Arklow Drive on Nov. 30, 2014.

Three people were shot, including Ashley MacLean Kearse, who was left paralyzed from the chest down and confined to a wheelchair.

During Downey’s trial, Kearse testified that four masked intruders broke into the home and shot her and two friends. During the trial in February 2017, the court heard that eight to nine bullets were fired.

Downey was acquitted of all 28 charges on Feb. 15, 2017. The Crown had appealed the acquittal.

READ MORE: Former NS boxing champ Markel Jason Downey to learn fate next week

In a court decision Wednesday, Judge Jamie Saunders said the principal issue at trial was “whether the Crown had proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Downey was the shooter.”

The Crown had appealed on the grounds that the trial judge applied the wrong test to visual and voice recognition evidence submitted during the trial.

Saunders agreed with the Crown’s assessment saying the judge “ignored highly relevant evidence, and considered irrelevant evidence in his reasoning.”

WATCH: Former NS boxing champ Markel Jason Downey to learn fate next week

1:52 Former NS boxing champ Markel Jason Downey to learn fate next week

Prior to his arrest, Downey was a championship boxer, often going by the name “Baby Jason.”

Downey won gold in his weight class in the 2011 Canada Winter Games in Halifax at just 15 years old.

Three other people have pleaded guilty in connection with the break-in, but their identities are protected under a publication ban because of their age.