By Patrick Burles - @PatrickBurles on Twitter

Manslaughter trial begins for woman accused in 2016 west side stabbing

May 14, 2018 | 5:51 PM

LETHBRIDGE – The manslaughter trial of Jillian Wendy Across the Mountain got underway Monday morning, May 14, with the selection of a jury.

While originally comprised of six men, six women, and one alternate male, a female member was excused before the trial officially started because of the hardships jury duty would cause her – leaving it at seven men and five women.

Across the Mountain is accused in the 2016 death of 56-year-old Frances Candace ‘Candy’ Little Light. She had originally been charged with second degree murder, however, that was reduced to manslaughter in in July of 2017, shortly before the trial was scheduled.

“Make your judgements strictly on the evidence you will hear from the witnesses,” said Justice Rodney Jerke, as he delivered his opening instructions to the jury. He added that they must not many any assumptions about the victim or the accused, based on their Aboriginal heritage.

Crown prosecutor Clayton Giles then made an opening statement to the jury, making a point of noting that the legal system is significantly different from what they had likely observed in movies, TV, and books.

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Giles then proceeded to outline the Crown’s case and the death of Little Light on Feb. 7, 2016. He explained that police responded to the apartment building along the 100 block of Columbia Boulevard West that morning, in response to a disturbance. Little Light’s body was then found 12 hours later in a pool of blood in her apartment, with Giles saying she died from a deep stab wound that cut an artery in her arm. He noted that a knife with the victim’s blood on it was found behind a radiator in the entry way to the building.

Continuing on, Giles stated that Across the Mountain had been living with Little Light at the time but moved out that day. When she attended the police station a few days later, Giles said Across the Mountain was wearing shoes taken from the new person she was staying with, and that her boots were later found by police with Little Light’s blood on them.

Nearing the end of the day, the Crown’s first evidence was delivered to the jury – the 911 call in which the initial disturbance was reported to police.

In it, another individual staying in the apartment building said a woman was going around banging on doors in the hallway and threatening to beat someone else. The caller explained that they did not know the woman in question.

The Crown will continue with their case Tuesday morning.

The trial is scheduled to run to June 1.