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By Curtis Galbraith

Man pleads not guilty by reason of mental disorder to 2015 murders

Oct 29, 2018 | 12:04 PM

The man charged following a double murder almost three years ago has pleaded not guilty to all six charges by reason of mental disorder.

A judge-alone trial started this morning at the Grande Prairie Provincial Courthouse where Daniel Goodridge is facing charges of murder, interfering with human remains and three counts of assault with a weapon.

Camp manager David Derksen, who was 37 and from LaCrete, Alta., and 50-year-old Hally Dubois from Red Deer, Alta., were killed at a work camp near Fox Creek in June 2015.  At the time, RCMP said Goodridge was an occupant of the camp and knew the victims. During the incident, police shot Goodridge but he survived. 

During the first part of the trial on Monday, the defence said Goodridge has been held at the detachment since Friday and he hasn’t had a chance to change his clothes or brush his teeth. They also said a charter application may be next if the conditions do not improve. 

The first day also saw evidence like an agreed statement of facts and two autopsy reports admitted, as was a was a photo booklet with pictures from the crime scene. The defence had opposed this, saying the photos did not have anything to do with Goodridge’s mental state at the time of the murders. Justice K.G. Nielsen disagreed, saying they were relevant and may say something about Goodridge’s mental state.

 

 

w/ files from the Canadian Press

by Curtis Galbraith