The body of a 22-year-old Dalhousie physics student has never been found
William Sandeson was found guilty of second-degree murder in the August 2015 death of Taylor Samson in Halifax.
Sandeson was found guilty of first-degree murder in a 2017 trial, but he filed an appeal, which led to a second trial.
On Thursday afternoon, James Chipman, a judge on the Supreme Court of Nova Scotia, gave the case to the jury. Jurors talked about the case all day Friday and into the late afternoon on Saturday before coming to a decision.
The jury could have decided that the man was guilty of first-degree murder, second-degree murder, manslaughter, or none of the charges.
The jury was asked to see if they all agreed on the same thing. It was.
‘He’s evil
Linda Boutilier, Samson’s mother, thanked the Crown for their hard work. “I know we didn’t want this. We wanted first-degree murder. We’ll take what we can get, though.
“He is bad.” “He has a special place in hell, and that’s all I have to say about that.”
The judge let the jury decide how long Sandeson should be in jail before he can start to apply for parole. The range goes from at least 10 years to at most 25 years.
Nine jurors chose 25 years, two chose 22 years, and one chose 10 years. The recommendations do not have to be followed.
Carla Ball, one of two Crown prosecutors, said, “The majority of jurors suggested a parole ineligibility period of more than 20 years, and only one suggested the minimum of 10 years.” “So, that shows how horrible we think the crime is,” they said.
Sentencing set for Apri
At the time of the killing, Sandeson was about to start his first year of medical school at Dalhousie University. Samson went to Dalhousie to study physics.
During the second trial, Sandeson admitted that he had shot Samson during a drug deal, but he said that he did it to protect himself.
“It looks like the jury didn’t believe the accused’s claim that he was acting in self-defense, which is why they decided he was guilty of second-degree murder,” Ball said.
Sandeson said in court that he put Samson’s body in a stream in the Truro area that flows into the Bay of Fundy. No one has ever found the body.
The sentence will be given on April 20-21. There will be two days for victims to say what happened to them.
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