Final trial begins into shooting of Jane Creba

TORONTO – The Crown opened its case Monday against the final two accused in the Boxing Day shootout that killed Toronto teenager Jane Creba four years ago.

During the course of the trial, Crown attorney Maurice Gillezeau told the jury evidence would show Louis Woodcock and Tyshaun Barnett "were both very much involved" in the tragedy.

Creba, 15, was shot by a stray bullet and killed while shopping in downtown Toronto with her family on Dec. 26, 2005. A number of other people were wounded in the gunplay.

Woodcock and Barnett, both 22, pleaded not guilty Monday to a host of charges, including second-degree murder in Creba’s death and attempted murder and aggravated assault in relation to several other victims.

In his opening address before the jury and Justice Gladys Pardu, Gillezeau laid out the circumstances of the now-infamous shootout that began in front of a Foot Locker store on Yonge Street.

Woodcock and Barnett were among a group of men who exchanged gunfire with their opponents in the downtown commercial district on the busiest shopping day of the year, the court heard.

"Jane Creba was caught in that crossfire, shot down and killed," Gillezeau said, noting evidence "strongly implicates" Woodcock and Barnett in the teenager’s death.

Jorrell Simpson-Rowe, who was found guilty in 2008 of second-degree murder in Creba’s death, was arrested shortly after the shootout carrying a 9-mm semi-automatic pistol. Police found seven spent shell casings from that weapon at the crime scene, the court heard.

A major DNA profile on the 9-mm gun was that of Woodcock, Gillezeau said, noting as many as five guns in total were used in the shootout.

Gillezeau also pointed to evidence of intercepted conversations between Woodcock and Barnett, in which the pair discuss getting rid of a gun.

The first witness to be called in the trial was Det. John Davidson, a 30-year veteran of the Toronto Police Service who worked with the forensic unit in December 2005, and part of a team that catalogued evidence at the scene of the Creba shooting.

The Crown asked Davidson to identify a series of photos from the 2005 investigation, including dozens of spent shell casings and bullet fragments, along with a pool of blood by the curb outside Foot Locker, identified as Creba’s.

During a brief cross-examination, defence lawyer Christopher Hicks called into question the value of the forensic analysis, suggesting as "pandemonium" broke out on Yonge Street during the gun battle, key evidence could have been disturbed.

The integrity of the crime scene "starts to change immediately," Davidson acknowledged.

Woodcock, in a light shirt and sweater, and Barnett, wearing a dark business suit, watched the proceedings without expression.

The trial continues today.