ESTEVAN, Sask. — Lawyers have given their closing arguments in the second-degree murder trial of Taylor Morgan Japp.
Defence lawyer Thomas Hynes and Crown prosecutor David Belanger delivered lengthy arguments Oct. 1 in Estevan Court of King's Bench. Each man began by thanking the jurors for their attention in a trial that began Sept. 2 and had 16 days of testimony. Then they appealed to the jurors' common sense before launching into their respective comments.
Japp is charged with second-degree murder in the April 2024 shooting of Briana Hayes at a residence on White Bear First Nations. Both were living in Oxbow at the time.
Hynes on the burden of proof
Hynes reminded the jurors the onus is on the Crown to prove Japp is guilty of the crime beyond a reasonable doubt. This trial is not about whether Japp is a good person, Hynes said, nor is it a place to judge his habits or lifestyle choices.
"This trial is about one thing: whether Taylor Japp committed a murder. That's the criminal offence that he's charged with. Murder."
If the jurors have a reasonable doubt about Japp's guilt, then Hynes said they have to acquit Japp.
Hynes outlined what he called three remaining areas of reasonable doubt: Japp told the jurors he didn't shoot Hayes; how the .45-calibre Glock pistol, believed to be the murder weapon, wound up at the residence in White Bear; and, most importantly, the possibility that the Glock was not the murder weapon.
"If you have a doubt that the .45-calibre Glock wasn't the murder weapon, then there should be considerable doubt in your mind that Mr. Japp was not the shooter," said Hynes.
Japp's lawyer said the accused did not have a good motive to kill Hayes that night, but someone else did. The lawyer noted Japp talked about some of his previous misdeeds, including drug dealing and firearm offences, as well as lying to police during the interview process. Japp also acknowledged he was an accessory after the fact to murder through his involvement in disposing of Hayes' body.
"It's reason enough, we say, to explain why Mr. Japp did a whole bunch of things in the time following Briana Hayes' death, either to destroy evidence, to become paranoid about the people around you or the people that could come after you, and to say you were out of town for a good while longer than you actually were," said Hynes.
And while Japp lied to police, so did other witnesses, Hynes said.
As for the other points, Hynes said Japp spent most or all of April 23, 2024, in Regina and left late that day. If the .45-calibre Glock that was believed to be the murder weapon was in his possession, Hynes said Japp would have had the firearm with him in Regina.
Japp's DNA was only found on the top slide of the firearm, Hynes said, not on the grip, trigger or the rest of the gun.
"Does it make sense to you that Taylor Japp would have this gun for days ahead of time, and his DNA is hardly on the gun at all?" asked Hynes.
The defence believes Hayes brought the firearm to the residence, House 108, where the shooting occurred, and she was going to meet a dangerous person in the middle of the night at White Bear, so she brought the small handgun to protect herself.
"If Mr. Japp didn't bring the handgun to House 108, we think you can have a reasonable doubt about whether he fired that handgun in the house, too," Hynes said.
Police found a .22-calibre bullet in the door of House 108, Hynes said. Citing expert opinion evidence from Maddie Keldson earlier in the trial, Hynes said it couldn't have been fired from the Glock, which should have jurors questioning whether it was the murder weapon.
Police never found the .45-calibre bullet that was believed to have killed Hayes, the defence lawyer said. The .22-calibre bullet was found based on what one of the witnesses told police.
"It's just way too much of a coincidence. It's way too convenient to say the police found a bullet in the place where they were told to look, but it doesn't match what we think is the murder weapon, so there just must have been another bullet somewhere that the police didn't find."
Hynes asked if the bullet was the one that killed Hayes, as there were two masked men and guns in House 108 that night.
The lawyer also pointed to a burn barrel in front of the house where the shooting occurred. The defence believes the fire might have been started by someone else to destroy evidence. A fire occurred at House 108 on April 26, 2024.
Prosecution points to Japp's lies
Belanger, meanwhile, went through the evidence that was presented during the trial and the testimony of numerous witnesses. He also pointed to Japp's two days on the witness stand Sept. 28 and 29.
Belanger said Hayes left her Oxbow residence angry and upset on April 23, 2024. She had multiple phone calls with him throughout the day on April 23, 2024. She went to House 108 in White Bear. Japp arrived early on April 24.
"He argued with Briana about drugs, theft and conduct within their drug operation," said Belanger. "A gunshot rang out and Briana Hayes collapsed on the floor, fatally wounded."
He said Japp was holding a .45-calibre handgun, and he and another person disposed of Hayes' body in an outhouse in the RM of Moose Mountain.
"He attempted to destroy evidence, conceal the firearm, erase digital evidence, fabricate an alibi and silence a witness. That is the only reliable story you heard, and that story you should base your verdict on, because it's the only one that reliably fits all of the evidence."
A month later, police recovered the Glock murder weapon that perfectly matched a witness' description, Belanger said.
Recapping Japp's actions after the shooting, Belanger said Japp asked a friend to say they were in Regina, even though they weren't; attempted to create a false hotel alibi; turned off location services on his phone; reset his phone; moved drugs from his residence; arranged for the Glock to be hidden; asked how to get rid of a body; and offered $30,000 to make a witness disappear.
"Those are the actions of a man who knows exactly what he has done, and a man who is literally willing to do anything to get away with the murder."
Text messages, conversations and jail calls were likely the most devastating evidence, Belanger said.
The prosecutor also pointed out Japp was the only witness called by the defence, at which time Belanger said the evidence became even stronger.
"The Crown respectfully submits that Mr. Japp's testimony was not credible, nor was it reliable," said Belanger.
He noted that Japp lied when he said he had no animosity toward Hayes, as they had a relationship "filled with conflict," Belanger said.
"The credibility of the accused was … wounded during his cross-examination. Over and over again, Mr. Japp was confronted with his sworn … statement to the police. Over and over again, he admitted that is a lie."
The accused also changed his story on who he thought was the shooter, finally settling on an unidentified masked shooter.
What's next
The jury will return Oct. 5 at 10 a.m., at which time Justice Michael Morris expects he will give his final instructions.
After his instructions are finished, the jury will be kept together and isolated for deliberations on the verdict. They will be provided with meals and accommodations if necessary.
