NANAIMO, B.C. - A defence lawyer says the man accused of murdering two of his former co-workers at a British Columbia sawmill should be acquitted of first-degree murder and convicted of manslaughter.
In closing arguments at the B.C. Supreme Court trial in Nanaimo, John Gustafson told the jury there is little doubt Kevin Addison fired the weapon, but his actions were not premeditated or intentional, adding that his client suffered from depression that caused him to be “unthinking and unfocused.”
Four men were shot at the Nanaimo mill in April 2014.
Gustafson told the jury that the question they must answer is what was going on in Addison's mind and if the evidence of his intention to kill has been proven beyond a reasonable doubt.
The trial earlier heard a witness describe Addison as in a zombie-like state when he shot and killed a man in the Western Forest Products mill's parking lot and then went to the office to shoot three others, killing another man.
The Crown has told the trial that Addison was a disgruntled former employee.
The 49-year-old Addison is also charged with two counts of attempted murder.
