A Granisle man has been sentenced to life in prison without eligibility for parole after a jury found him guilty of second-degree murder in the 2009 stabbing death of his stepfather.
Robert Arthur Vernon Reeves, 42, was issued the term on Friday in B.C. Supreme Court in relation to the death of Brian Fraser Baker, 61, on the evening of April 26, 2009 in a Morrison Street home where the two, as well as Reeves' mother, had been living.
The verdict comes out of a second trial for Reeves. A new trial was ordered in May 2013, when the B.C. Court of Appeal found the trial judge failed to adequately explain to the jury the difference between murder and manslaughter during the original trial, heard in Smithers in April 2011.
The jury in the first trial also found Reeves guilty of second degree murder. First-degree murder is premeditated while second-degree is committed on impulse and in the heat of the moment.
During the first trial, Reeves' mother had testified that on the night of the killing, Reeves was angry with her over the preparation of dinner and grabbed and shook her. She said her husband went into the kitchen and said something to calm the situation and then left.
What happened next, she was unable to say because she either experienced an epileptic fit or went into shock, but her next recollection, which she believed was about 20 minutes later, was her husband calling for help
She found him lying on the floor bleeding from the stomach, arms and hands and attempted to staunch the bleeding with a towel. When she tried calling police, Reeves cut the telephone cord but she managed to go across the street and use a neighbour's phone.
Reeves testified during the first trial that he had no recollection of what happened.
Home to slightly less than 400 people, Granisle is located about 325 kilometres west of Prince George.
The jury in the second trial heard testimony over roughly two weeks before reaching its verdict last week.
