Convicted murderer William Sandeson’s lawyer says he should be granted a new trial because the judge did not sufficiently address the defence’s request for a new trial.
Sandeson was found guilty of the first-degree murder of 22-year-old Taylor Samson in June 2017. He is currently serving a life sentence with no parole eligibility for 25 years.
Shortly after his conviction, Sandeson announced he would appeal the conviction. Two days have been set aside for the hearing in the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal.
READ MORE: Convicted murderer William Sandeson’s appeal hearing to get underway Monday
There are four grounds for Sandeson’s appeal, which include information received from a private detective, the decision to not grant a mistrial, the interrogation of Sandeson, and the overall conviction of first-degree murder.
Sandeson’s lawyer, Ian Smith, focused much of his morning’s arguments on RCMP Sgt. Bruce Webb, who was hired by Sandeson’s lawyers as a private detective.
The court heard that Webb interviewed two witnesses, Justin Blades and Pookiel McCabe, who lived in the apartment next to where Samson was killed.
Blades and McCabe initially said they didn’t hear anything, but Smith says a different interview with McCabe indicated otherwise. Smith says Webb tipped police off to this information, which police received “in violation to their oath of office.”
“Would Canadians be shocked, or would it harm the integrity of the system of justice if Canadians knew that when they’re on trial, it’s OK for the police to encourage a member of your defence team, a person privy to defence strategy … to become a state agent?” Smith asked. “To hide all those facts from you?
“That’s the real question.”
Smith also said it was an improper step to receive information from witnesses on Sandeson.
Sandeson sued Webb for this in October 2018.
Smith also focused on the search that was conducted at Sandeson’s apartment shortly after Samson’s disappearance. Smith argued that police did not have grounds to secure a search warrant for Sandeson’s apartment, due to the limited information they had at that time.
Smith said police “only had a hunch” of Sandeson’s involvement, which was not enough of a reason to secure the search warrant because that isn’t considered an urgent circumstance.
“The police did not have reasonable grounds to believe that Samson was in the apartment,” Smith said. “The suggestion that he was there was pure speculation.”
READ MORE: Convicted Dalhousie killer William Sandeson appeals murder conviction
Smith added that the evidence gathered during the searches should not have been considered during the trial, as the searches were “illegal.”
Smith said he is seeking a new trial to “maintain the integrity of the justice system.”
Sandeson was not in court for Monday’s court proceedings, but Samson’s mother, Linda Boutilier, was.
The appeal hearing will resume Tuesday.
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