Crown's summation in Pickton trial appeals to jury's common sense

Jurors at Robert William Pickton's murder trial must take a "reality check" and use common sense to determine if he is guilty of killing six women whose remains were found on his suburban Vancouver pig farm, the lead Crown prosecutor said Thursday.

Robert William Pickton is on trial for the deaths of six women who went missing from Vancouver's Downtown Eastside.
(CBC)

Mike Petrie urged jurors during the Crown's closing arguments in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster not to lose sight of the main point of the 10-month trial.

"The case isn't about answering the question about why [the women] died, or even precisely how they died, or what led up to their deaths or exactly what the circumstances were surrounding their deaths," Petrie said.

"The issue here in this case now is who killed them and who disposed of their remains. It is the Crown's position, of course, that it is a single person and that single person is the accused."

Pickton, a Port Coquitlam pig farmer, is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Sereena Abotsway, Mona Wilson, Andrea Joesbury, Brenda Wolfe, Marnie Frey and Georgina Papin. He'll face another 20 murder charges at a later date.

He has pleaded not guilty to all charges.

Defence finishes closing arguments

The defence rested its case earlier Thursday after 3½ days of closing arguments.

Defence lawyers laid out a series of examples they said raise reasonable doubts about Pickton's guilt. They pointed to what the Crown says was Pickton's confession, saying it was a simple parroting of what police were telling him.

They also argued the DNA evidence points to more links between the accused killer's friends and the missing women, than to Pickton himself.

In the afternoon, the Crown began its turn by claiming the defence tried to seduce the jury with its slick PowerPoint presentation.

Petrie told jury members that despite what the defence told them, there's no evidence Pickton is weak or mentally feeble.

Crown case based on totality of evidence: Petrie

Petrie asked the jurors to think of the evidence in context — the context being that the remains of six human beings were found in Pickton's backyard.

The Crown's case is based on the totality of the evidence that demonstrates the women were killed in a similar fashion, and were disposed of by the same person, Petrie said.

He said Pickton was a butcher who had the means, ability and opportunity to commit the acts and that he had a plan to kill a great number of women.

Petrie asked the jury members to consider an alternate scenario that someone else — the real killer — snuck onto Pickton's property with body parts, bones and personal belongings and deposited the articles without anyone noticing.

He said this suggestion would be absurd.

The Crown will continue its closing arguments on Friday.