Murder conviction overturned
The man convicted of killing Kelowna teenager Evan Wilkes at a 2007 grad party will get another day in court.
A panel of B.C. Court of Appeal judges revealed Monday they were setting aside a 2008 second degree murder conviction for Trevor Shannon because the trial judge failed to deliver clear answers to the jury when they demonstrated a lack of understanding of the law, specifically in the area of intent.
There’s no information yet when Shannon, who was 22 when he shot 18-year-old Wilkes in the head, will be back in court.
He’s contended all along that the fatal shot was the accidental by-product of trying to hit Wilkes with the gun.
At his 2008 trial, jurors heard that Shannon and two of his friends met with Wilkes after crashing a party.
One of Shannon’s friends soon got involved in a confrontation with another party guest, who was a bit younger than the others. The court heard that the younger man pulled out knives, and that Shannon, a drug dealer, pulled out a gun he had with him.
The party headed outside, where Wilkes began taunting Shannon.
That’s when Shannon pulled out the gun again and shot Evan, who later died from his injuries.
Shannon was arrested April 8, 2007, not long after the shooting, and just one year later was sentenced to life in prison without possibility of parole for 10 years—the typical sentence for second degree murder—just one year later.
kmichaels@kelownacapnews.com
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