The crown and defence presented their closing arguments at Regina’s Court of Queen’s Bench on Thursday, in the second-degree murder trial of Duran Redwood.
Thirty-year-old Redwood is accused of killing his girlfriend, 33-year-old Celeste Yawney, in 2015.
According to an agreed statement of facts, Redwood does not deny his actions caused Yawney’s death, but rather the case is a question of intent and why it happened.
The defence told the jury that Redwood has no memory of what happened that night and was too drunk to foresee the consequences of his actions.
Redwood was too intoxicated to form the intent needed for a conviction of second-degree murder, the defence went on to say. Instead, telling the jury a conviction of manslaughter is more appropriate.
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The defence also told the jury Redwood’s actions following Yawney’s death are not indicative of someone with the intent to commit murder.
The jury heard Redwood made no attempt to clean up after Yawney’s death. Instead, he went to bed and found Yawney’s body in the bathtub the next morning. He turned himself in to police the following day.
According to the crown, the case is not about what Redwood remembers, but his state of mind at the time he allegedly killed Yawney.
The crown told the jury that the nature of Yawney’s injuries, which included blunt force trauma to the head and torso, suggests Redwood intended to kill her.
The crown also pointed out inconsistencies with what Redwood told investigators he remembered from that night, including hitting Yawney. He would later testify he wasn’t being truthful and was telling the officer what he wanted to hear.
While the defence maintains Redwood has no recollection of the events that evening, the crown pointed to a series of texts and phone calls between Yawney and Redwood around 2:00 a.m. that night.
Redwood also had the ability to leave Yawney’s, walk to the store and get back to Yawney’s, the crown went on to say, suggesting he was aware of what he was doing at the time.
The crown also called into question how much Redwood had to drink that night, saying there’s no indication Redwood drank the 20 to 30 beers he alleges.
With closing arguments complete, the judge will give the jury its instructions Friday. From there, it’s up to the jury.
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