Local man convicted of murder granted new trial

A Waterloo man convicted of firstdegree murder is getting a new trial.

The Supreme Court of Canada set aside Derrick Lawlor’s conviction on Friday.

Six years ago, a jury found Lawlor guilty of murdering Mark McCreadie in the woods beside Victoria Park in Kitchener. He was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.

Lawlor, now 62, last year lost a bid for a new trial at the Ontario Court of Appeal.

In that appeal, Lawlor “did not contest that fact that he caused the victim’s death” and admitted he was guilty of manslaughter, the Supreme Court said in a summary of the case.

“However, he argued the trial judge failed to expressly instruct the jury on the use of evidence of his mental health, which was relevant to determining his intent to commit the offence.”

Lawlor took his case to the Supreme Court and won a new trial.

“This case is about whether the judge in a murder trial correctly instructed the jury with respect to the accused’s mental health conditions and his post-offence conduct,” the Supreme Court said.

“In the judge’s instructions to the jury on the element of intent, which is required to find an accused guilty of first-degree murder, the trial judge did not specifically highlight any evidence related to Mr. Lawlor’s mental health,” the court added.

“Such evidence could have impacted whether (Lawlor) intended to commit the offence. Rather, he asked the jury to consider ‘all of the evidence,’ including Mr. Lawlor’s state of mind and any evidence of impairment by drugs and alcohol.”

A new trial was backed by a 4-1 margin.

“As has been stated on many occasions, and we repeat it here, courts need to be mindful of evidence as to the mental health where this is relevant to the issues of criminal responsibility,” said Supreme Court Justice Michelle O’Bonsawin.

“This is especially so in instructing a jury to assist them in the proper use of such evidence.”

Lawlor had consumed “psychiatric medication” and alcohol before McCreadie died, the court said in the case summary.

On April 9, 2014, Lawlor had sex in Victoria Park with McCreadie, 50, and another man. The next day, McCreadie’s body was found in the woods. The cause of death was external neck compression.

Lawlor “made several statements both before and after the victim’s death about how he wanted to harm and kill gay men, and that he had at times carried a rope and a knife to do so,” the Supreme Court said.

“In the days following the killing, Mr. Lawlor also searched the internet for news with respect to the discovery of a body in the park.”

At the Ontario Court of Appeal, two judges rejected Lawlor’s bid for a new trial. One judge, Justice Ian Nordheimer, would have allowed the appeal.

“In his view, the considerable evidence on Mr. Lawlor’s mental health was central to determining whether he had the requisite intent for murder,” the Supreme Court said.

“He also thought the trial judge should have warned the jury against drawing incriminating inferences from Mr. Lawlor’s post-offence conduct without considering alternative explanations as to why he was searching the internet for news about the victim’s death.”

Nordheimer put it this way: “I would be surprised if anyone who was in Victoria Park on the evening in question, and who then found out that someone had been killed in the park, would not have conducted media searches to find out what had happened,” he said.

“There is simply no basis for concluding that conducting media searches in such circumstances amounts, in some fashion, to consciousness of guilt.”

A date for Lawlor’s new trial has not been set.