Murder conspiracy case dismissed, accused found not guilty

By Nigel Maxwell

The retrial for two people accused of conspiring to kill their spouses was over before it even started on Monday.

At a voir dire hearing that preceded the scheduled trial, Justice Catherine Dawson determined an audio recording of Angela Nicholson and Curtis Vey discussing their alleged plans could not be admitted as evidence.

Outside the courthouse, Nicholson’s lawyer, Ron Piche, said the recording was inadmissible due to police missteps. There was never a warrant to search and seize the iPod that held the recording, thus violating the pair’s Charter rights.

“(Police) had warrants to search computers but they never had a warrant to search the iPod and that omission proved fatal in terms of the Crown’s ability to rely on it,” Piche said.

Defense lawyer Ron Piche discusses why the admission of the recording was an issue now and not at the time of the original 2016 trial. @princealbertnow @northeastNOW_SK pic.twitter.com/wzE00h5S9f

— nigel maxwell (@nigelmaxwell) May 27, 2019

Nicholson and Vey were originally convicted in 2016 on charges of conspiracy to commit murder. A judge sentenced them to three years in prison each.

However, a Saskatchewan Court of Appeals decision in August of last year found the trial judge erred in their charge to the jury and a new trial was ordered. Vey and Nicholson have both argued they never intended to follow through on the acts discussed in the 2013 conversation.

Both Nicholson and Vey were seen exchanging hugs with family members after Monday’s verdict. Piche said the court process took a toll on Nicholson.

“You know there’s been a lot of scrutiny, but at the end of the day, she holds her head up high,” he said.

After Justice Hanson announced the audio recording would not be admitted as evidence, Crown Prosecutor Lori O’Connor said she would not be calling any evidence. Outside of court, she said that without the recording admitted into court, there wasn’t much of a case.

“The Crown puts in the best case we can and our role is to only proceed if we think there is a likelihood of a conviction and in this case without that recording, I didn’t believe we had that,” she explained.

With that being said, O’Conner added that by not calling any evidence and having the court dismiss the charges, the Crown’s right to appeal was preserved.

“The issue for the Crown today was without that evidence what did we have? So we will go back and make decisions about whether to appeal it and then potentially be in the same position again,” she said.

Brigitte Vey outside court with reaction to decision. @princealbertnow @northeastNOW_SK pic.twitter.com/8czxGjOk66

— nigel maxwell (@nigelmaxwell) May 27, 2019

Brigitte Vey, who made the initial recording when she was Curtis Vey’s wife, was at the hearing and said she was still happy she went to the police with it.

“They did not ending up harming me or Jim Taylor (Nicholson’s husband) so I’m OK with this. I’m at peace that it’s finally over,” she said. “We can go with our lives.”

Neither Vey nor Nicholson made themselves available to speak to media after the verdict.