‘One step closer to justice’: Kelowna man charged with second degree murder of girlfriend

Charges for a Kelowna man accused of killing the woman he was dating have been upgraded.

Brandon Davina, 38, is now charged with the second degree murder of Brianna Jankauskas on Aug. 21. He was previously charged with manslaughter in the case that’s been categorized as domestic violence.

What prompted the change in charge remains to be seen but second degree murder in Canada is classified as a deliberate killing that occurred without planning and does not fall under any of the categories of first degree murder. This includes killings during sexual assaults.

Manslaughter, on the other hand, is a homicide committed without intent and it carries no minimum sentence.

With the heavier charge facing Davina, the maximum sentence is life in prison with no parole for 10 years.

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The potential for a more severe penalty with a stiffer charge was an appreciable shift for Jankauskas’s ex-boyfriend and longtime friends, who gathered at the courthouse Thursday for the brief court appointment.

While the trial that will test the charge is likely months away, outside the courthouse, Jeff Christie described it as “one step closer to justice for Brianna.”

“Hearing that (Davina) was originally was charged with manslaughter, right away, I knew that was not enough,” Christie said.

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“That wasn’t going to be any comfort for her friends, her family, the public … it was heartwarming to see that the justice system is finally doing what they’re supposed to do and getting us one step closer to being able to grieve and get closure.”

Davina was previously charged and convicted of assault of a partner, and Christie said that it was a failure of the system that he had to kill someone before he was detained.

“It has taken this awful turn of him killing somebody for them to wake up and say he’s a danger to the public,” he said.

It’s heartbreaking that Jankauskas is the one who paid the price, he said.

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The homicide investigation started Aug. 21, when Mounties were called to a Hardie Road home in Kelowna’s Rutland neighbourhood to help with a woman suffering from life-threatening injuries.

The woman later succumbed to those injuries. Davina was then arrested.

Friends of Jankauskas confirmed that she and Davina had only recently started dating.

Davina has already been charged with assault with a weapon and mischief, from another Kelowna domestic file that dates back to February of last year.

He’s currently being detained at the Okanagan Correctional Centre in Oliver. A bail hearing on the new charge has yet to be held.