Closing arguments wrap up in Dawson City, Yukon murder trial, jury now in deliberation
The jury in a Dawson City murder trial were sequestered Thursday afternoon after the Crown and defence provided closing arguments.
Kane Morgan is charged with second-degree murder for killing Kevin Edward McGowan in 2018, in Dawson City, Yukon.
Morgan has admitted to killing McGowan, but it's the jury's job to determine whether he had intent when doing so.
Defence lawyer Danny Markovitz said the evidence proved that Morgan was not only intoxicated, but to the point where there is no way he could have formed intent to kill McGowan.
Markovitz also asked jurors to keep in mind the presumption of innocence.
The defence asked jurors to consider all of the testimony presented by witnesses who were either with Morgan and McGowan that night, and testimony provided by the forensic psychologist that interviewed Morgan.
The defence also noted that since the incident in 2018, Morgan has been sober, started a family, and is working hard to get his life together.
The Crown's closing arguments didn't dispute that Morgan was intoxicated at the time of McGowan's death, but prosecutor Leo Lane told jurors that evidence and testimony about how intoxicated he was, was inconsistent.
Lane said that Morgan overstated the level of intoxication he was in, and understated his ability to plan, in his testimony earlier this week.
Second-degree or manslaughter
The jury is tasked to find Morgan either guilty of second-degree murder or not guilty.
If the jury finds Morgan not guilty of second-degree murder they are required to find him guilty of manslaughter.
Manslaughter is defined as a crime of killing a human being without the intention of killing them. Whereas second-degree murder is defined as a homicide that is committed intentionally but is not premeditated or planned.
Morgan has admitted to causing McGowan's death by blunt-force trauma but he has pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder, saying he did not intend to kill McGowan.
