Ontario's top court dismisses Peter Khill's manslaughter conviction appeal but reduces sentence

An Ontario court has dismissed a conviction appeal by Hamilton man Peter Khill, who was found guilty in the shooting death of an Indigenous man in 2016, while agreeing to impose a lesser sentence.

In a ruling released Thursday afternoon, Ontario's Court of Appeal agreed that Khill's sentence of six years in prison, rather than eight, is appropriate.

Khil, now 35, appealed the conviction entered by Justice Andrew Goodman of the Superior Court of Justice, who was sitting with a jury, on Dec. 16, 2022, and the sentence handed down on June 6, 2023.

Thursday's decision comes after Goodman later admitted he mistakenly imposed the wrong prison sentence on Khill, who was found guilty in the shooting death of Jonathan Styres, 29. Khill's eight-year sentence in 2023 came after an already lengthy and complicated criminal justice process spanning three trials, multiple appeals and a Supreme Court ruling. 

Goodman made the stunning admission in a letter to the Court of Appeal last summer. 

The appeal against sentence is allowed and the sentence is reduced to six years' imprisonment.- Court of appeal for Ontario

"In our view, the applicable goals of sentencing can only be achieved with a term lengthier than the mandatory minimum sentence of four years' imprisonment, the existence of which does not displace the range of sentences for manslaughter developed by this court," the ruling says.

 "In reaching this conclusion, we rely on the victim impact statements and the community impact statement that describe the 'devastating impact' that the death of Mr. Styres had on his family and community. We reduce the sentence to six years' imprisonment.

"The appeal against conviction is dismissed. Leave to appeal sentence is granted, the appeal against sentence is allowed and the sentence is reduced to six years' imprisonment. All other aspects of the sentence remain in force," the judges wrote.

Superior Court judge said he knew he'd made a mistake

In a Hamilton courtroom in June 2023, Goodman said he mistakenly brought and read aloud the wrong sentence: eight years in custody instead of six. 

Goodman said he knew he'd made a mistake right away, but didn't take any corrective action until after Khill had already begun appealing the conviction. 

"I acknowledge that the timing and scope of this letter to the Court of Appeal may be somewhat unprecedented, and is an extraordinary step in this criminal proceeding," Goodman wrote in the letter dated Aug. 12, 2024. 

"Nevertheless, I feel strongly compelled and duty bound." 

For the appeal, Khill's lawyers argued he should be acquitted of manslaughter, get a new trial or that his sentence be reduced to four years — the minimum penalty for manslaughter — or six years given the revelations in Goodman's letter.

University of Toronto criminal law Prof. Kent Roach previously told CBC Hamilton that over his 35-year career, he'd never seen a letter like the one Goodman wrote. 

"This mistake is embarrassing for the administration of justice," Roach said. 

"If our courts make an error, particularly one that affects the liberty of the accused, they should be more willing to correct their mistakes."

Case that's seen 3 trials dates back 9 years

Khill shot and killed Styres in February 2016. 

Khill had woken up to noises that night and went outside. He found Styres breaking into his truck and fired two shots, killing the Cayuga father for two from Six Nations of the Grand River.  

Khill was charged with second-degree murder and pleaded not guilty, arguing he was acting in self-defence and feared for his safety when he shot Styres. 

He's had three trials. 

In the first in 2018, Khill was acquitted by a jury. The Crown appealed and the Supreme Court ordered a new trial. 

The second trial began in late 2022, but ended in mistrial when Goodman discovered a juror was potentially biased. 

The third and most recent trial — which Goodman also presided over — took place in December 2022. The jury found him not guilty of second-degree murder, but guilty of manslaughter. 

Lawyers asked for 4 years in prison

Goodman wrote in his letter to the Court of Appeal that he prepared three rulings that were identical except for the amount of time in custody — which ranged from six to eight years

Goodman had decided on six years because of "substantial mitigating factors," his letter said. Khill didn't have a criminal record, had expressed remorse for taking Styres's life and provided dozens of character references. 

But Goodman had grabbed the wrong decision when he left his chambers, and when it came time to read the prison term, he said eight years instead of six.

Styres's aunt, Rhonda Johns, previously told CBC Hamilton her family had found peace in the eight-year sentence. She said it was "mind boggling" they're still waiting for the final word so many years after his death. 

At Khill's appeal hearing last October, his lawyers raised the fact Goodman had not only imposed the wrong sentence, but then waited more than a year to correct it as a major issue with the case. They argued his sentence should be reduced to four years. 

Khill's lawyer, Bryan Badali, told the three-judge panel that Goodman saying the wrong number of years wasn't "merely a misspeak."

"If that's all it was, why didn't he call the parties back? It was a high-pressure trial, it was a retrial, it had previously been before the Supreme Court. He was clearly grappling with that," said Badali. 

Ministry of Attorney General lawyer Susan Reid argued on behalf of the Crown. 

She told the Court of Appeal that while the delay in Goodwin writing his letter was "no doubt extremely unfortunate," he doesn't indicate he wants to alter his decision of six years to four, as the defence is requesting.