In a dramatic conclusion to a Saskatoon murder trial, defence lawyer Chris Murphy made a startling admission about his client, Andrew Steven Rosenfeldt, while vehemently arguing that those lies do not equate to murder.
Closing Arguments Focus on Lies and Alternative Theory
During his closing arguments at Rosenfeldt's judge-alone trial in Saskatoon King's Bench courtroom on Friday, Murphy conceded that his 28-year-old client fabricated a story for police about masked intruders entering their basement apartment and fatally shooting his girlfriend, 20-year-old Nykera Justice Brown.
The incident occurred on November 15, 2022, at their suite located at 124 Avenue P South. Rosenfeldt is charged with second-degree murder in Brown's death.
"He's guilty of being stupid," Murphy told the court, presided over by Justice Heather MacMillan-Brown. The defence lawyer also acknowledged that Rosenfeldt hid a sawed-off .22 calibre rifle and the gun's bolt action before police arrived at the scene. Officers later discovered the weapon concealed within a box spring.
Ballistics Evidence and the Suicide Theory
A key point in the defence's argument revolves around the limitations of the physical evidence. A ballistics expert testified during the trial that he could not definitively determine if the recovered rifle fired the fatal shot because the bullet retrieved from Brown's head was too heavily damaged for conclusive analysis.
Murphy urged the judge to strongly consider the possibility that Brown died by suicide. He summarized the testimony of pathologist Dr. Shaun Ladham, who conducted the autopsy. Ladham stated that the fatal gunshot wound's upward trajectory and the evidence indicating the gun was fired at close range to her body made it possible that the wound was self-inflicted.
Victim's Mental Health History Presented
The defence built its case around Brown's documented struggles with mental health. The court heard testimony from a police officer who had previously intervened to pull Brown from the ledge of the University Bridge.
Furthermore, on that same day, Brown was transported to Royal University Hospital after she called 911 and expressed a desire to harm herself. Murphy argued that Brown's history, combined with her expressed unhappiness about her living situation to family members, indicated a person in significant emotional distress.
"This is a person in crisis," Murphy stated to the courtroom.
He also challenged the Crown's theory that Rosenfeldt was motivated to kill Brown because she was planning to leave him. Murphy took issue with the prosecution's argument that Brown played a crucial role in helping Rosenfeldt sell drugs, stating there was no evidence to support claims of jealousy or that intimate issues mentioned in Brown's journal were a factor in her death.
