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Battleford Court of King's Bench. (File photo/ battlefordsNOW Staff)
Court proceedings

Verdict reserved in Moosomin murder case

Sep 18, 2023 | 12:02 PM

After two weeks of hearing evidence, a Battleford Court of King’s Bench Justice has requested a further two months to consider a decision.

Jannay Blackbird’s trial wrapped up Friday at Court of King’s Bench in Battleford. The verdict was subsequently reserved to Dec. 11.

Blackbird, 32, is facing a charge of first degree murder in the death of Damian Moosomin in May 2020.

The 20-year-old was found deceased in the backyard of a property in the 1500 block of 105th Street in North Battleford. He was originally reported missing to police on May 11 of that year.

Damian Moosomin. (submitted photo/RCMP)

Blackbird was one of multiple people charged in the case.

Stormy Wapass-Semaganis, of Edmonton, is charged with manslaughter, with her trial set for Jan. 29, 2024, with Jennifer Schmidt acting for the Crown and Brent Little for the defence.

Tye Partridge, of Moosomin First Nation, was previously sentenced to 15 years in custody after pleading guilty to the charge of manslaughter in May of 2022.

Denver Roy, of Sweetgrass First Nation, received 10 months in custody and nine months probation in October of 2021, after pleading guilty to the charge of offering an indignity to a dead body. An additional charge of accessory after the fact was withdrawn.

Melissa Semaganis and a suspect under the age of 18 at the time of the incident, who were both facing a charge of accessory after the fact to murder, saw a stay of proceedings in their cases in April of 2022.

There is a publication ban on the details of the case until after all the accused have gone through the court process.

nigel.maxwell@pattisonmedia.com

On X: @nigelmaxwell

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