David Caissie found guilty of first-degree murder in death of ex-girlfriend
Caissie convicted of killing Carol King near Rosetown in 2011
David Caissie has been found guilty of first-degree murder in the August 2011 death of Carol King.
Caissie stood trial at Saskatoon's Court of Queen's Bench in the fall of 2018.
The Crown alleged that Caissie admitted to killing King, his ex-partner, near Rosetown — about 110 kilometres southwest of Saskatoon — and disposing of her body after police ran a so-called "Mr. Big" sting on Caissie. This is where police pose as criminals and gain the trust of a suspect.
Much of the trial revolved around the propriety of the police operation.
Since 2014, the onus has fallen on prosecutors to convince judges to allow material from Mr. Big stings to be admitted. The Supreme Court made the change because of concerns that vulnerable suspects were being preyed upon by police.
Justice Richard Danyliuk delivered his ruling in an 80-page decision. From the outset, he noted how this particular Mr. Big sting was different.
"Usually, there is perhaps some minor disclosure to other undercover officers but the main detailed disclosure comes during the interview with the actual crime boss, 'Mr. Big,'" he wrote.
"This case runs against that usual grain, insofar as there were several repetitive confessions to three different undercover officers ... what they have in common is that, in each, Mr, Caissie claimed that he killed Ms. King."
Caissie was also found guilty of offering an indignity to a body after dumping her body in a wooded area.
Family relieved
Outside court, prosecutor Matt Miazga said he'd spoken with Carol King's sister Brenda about the decision. She lives in Newfoundland.
"I think they were very relieved that there's somebody who's finally said now what they've always believed, which is that David Caissie was responsible for her sister's death," he said.
Defence lawyer Kevin Hill says he still misgivings about Mr. Big stings, and the information that flows from them.
"It was just dangerous to rely on an inherently unreliable Mr Big operation, that the Mr Big operation was not corroborated by the collateral evidence or the original investigation," Hill said.
Hill said he's not yet decided whether the decision will be appealed.
Crown confident
In court, Prosecutor Matthew Miazga argued there was nothing in the evidence suggesting police violence or coercion of Caissie during the 49 scenarios they set up over a five-month span.
Miazga also said there was nothing that came out of the hours of police audio recordings that indicated he had been taken advantage of.
Further, he said that Caissie revealed details to officers that explained what happened on Aug. 6, 2011, the day King is believed to have been killed.
King, who grew up in the western Newfoundland community of Mattis Point, had been living in a rural home in Herschel, Sask., 125 kilometres southwest of Saskatoon.
Defence lawyer Kevin Hill said the main problem with the findings in the sting is their reliability.
"There are just too many things Caissie doesn't know that he should, and things that he says he knows that don't check out," he said.
"These are details that should be seared into his memory."