THUNDER BAY – Nicholas Necan went on an alcohol fueled, “frenzied out of control rampage” that led to the death of George Gerard, his defence lawyer concedes.
But Neil McCartney insisted that makes his client guilty of manslaughter, not necessarily murder.
Delivering his closing argument on Thursday in the second-degree murder trial against Necan, McCartney said his client came to after a drunken blackout to find out that he had killed someone.
“It’s clear cut that’s what happened,” McCartney said.
McCartney told the 12 jurors that there is no doubt Necan caused the death of the 60-year-old Gerard inside a unit at the Casablanca Apartments complex on Jan. 28, 2016 but argued the defendant was too drunk to have the intent to kill.
The lawyer lined up a tall can of beer, a 200-millilitre bottle of Fireball whiskey, a 750-millilitre bottle of Jack Daniel’s and an empty wine bottle directly in front of the jury to illustrate the amount of alcohol Necan would have consumed within a three-hour span.
McCartney referenced testimony from multiple witnesses who told the court Necan seemed out of it or in a daze when they encountered him in the apartment with Gerard.
First responding police officers to the scene encountered Necan attacking Gerard with a wooden board. When ordered to the drop the object, Necan brandished it in a menacing manner towards officers who had their guns drawn, which McCartney sarcastically labelled a “brilliant move.”
Officers dragged a combative and resistant Necan out of the apartment, to a cruiser and ultimately to the Thunder Bay police station. Along the way, Necan repeatedly swore at officers and threatened to track them down and kill them.
While in a holding cell, Necan shadowboxed and performed what appeared to be martial arts moves.
At the time, Necan was a man with nothing sensible going on in his mind, let alone the intent to commit murder, McCartney asserted.
Crown prosecutor Gordon Fillmore countered there was a clear reason for why Necan did not relent from the “prolonged attack” on Gerard, which could have gone on for as long as an hour.
“Because George was still breathing,” Fillmore said.
The 90 separate injuries on Gerard’s head, face and neck identified during autopsy were indicative of “targeted blows” to areas of the body most likely to cause death, Fillmore charged.
Fillmore theorized Necan’s aggression to officers was a result of anger for being apprehended and interrupted and the only means to strike back after being handcuffed, adding the defendant’s interactions with people immediately prior to the attack indicated responsiveness and situational awareness.
While Necan had consumed a “significant amount of alcohol,” that doesn’t mean the defendant had no thought process, Fillmore added.
“Mr. Necan knew exactly what he was doing when he beat Mr. Gerard to death,” Fillmore said.
Justice John Fregeau will deliver his charge to the jury Thursday afternoon in advance of deliberations.
