A defence lawyer for a man on trial for the murder of a 12-year-old girl in British Columbia over 40 years ago says the Crown relied on a false confession and failed to prove its case beyond a reasonable doubt.
Patrick Angly told jurors in closing arguments at the B.C. Supreme Court trial that undercover police provided and promised inducements to Garry Handlen during a sting operation in Ontario in 2014.
Handlen has pleaded not guilty to the first-degree murder of Monica Jack in Merritt in 1978.
Angly says undercover officers used a so-called Mr. Big operation that led to his client's confession but the law recognizes that those targeted by such police practices can falsely confess to crimes.
