A new trial began Monday for a Wainwright man charged with second-degree murder in the death of his estranged wife inside the former couple’s home.
Robert Dean Clifford was 35 when RCMP arrested him eight months after his wife, 31-year-old Nichole Clifford, was found dead in the central Alberta town.
Last year, a judge declared a mistrial in the case.
The crime itself occurred more than five years ago, in February 2017.
When Nichole didn’t show up for her job in the social services sector, and wasn’t answering her phone, friends went to check on her.
Unable to get inside her house as everything was locked up tight, those same friends called RCMP for a wellness check.
Soon after, the first officer on scene found Nichole’s bloodied and bruised body at the foot of the stairs. She’d been stabbed in the chest.
Court heard there were complaints of previous incidents of domestic violence in the relationship — Nichole had even called police after Robert broke in and was found hiding under her bed.
On Monday, testimony focused on two critical points: a boarded-up basement window in Nichole’s home, which may have been the access point for the offender, as well as dozens of empty cans of Keystone beer.
The cans were found all over the Wainwright home Robert was staying in, but one was also found in an unlocked holiday trailer in Nichole’s back yard, along with space heaters, water jugs and food.
A forensic investigator testified she found what appeared to be blood on the Clifford’s wedding album — which was sitting on a bed in Robert’s home — as well as on the seatbelt of his car.
The judge-alone trial will continue Tuesday and is slated to take two weeks to complete.