Trial for two accused in Jordan Manners murder begins
Posted February 3, 2010 7:05 pm.
This article is more than 5 years old.
The first-degree murder trial got underway at the University Ave. courthouse, Wednesday, for the two young men accused in a shooting that rocked Toronto.
Both have pleaded not guilty in the death of 15-year-old Jordan Manners at CW Jeffreys Collegiate in May of 2007.
In his opening statement, Crown attorney Aaron Del Rizzo told the court Manners was dragged down a set of stairs at CW by the accused.
He also said a witness will testify she saw one of the accused push something into the 15-year-old’s chest before he collapsed.
Court heard a 25 calibre bullet pierced the victim’s heart and a lung, which left him struggling for breath as he tried to speak.
After he was shot, the jury was told the accused rooted through Manners pockets before running away.
The jury was also told that teachers who ran to the scene did not realize Manners had been shot because there was no pool of blood. They only knew when they pulled his jacket aside and saw a patch of blood.
Manners’ mother, Loreen Small, sat hunched over as she listened to details of how her son died.
The trial is expected to last two months and up to 40 witnesses are slated to testify.
The accused are now in their 20s; however, there names are being protected because they were 17-years-old when the murder happened.
This marked the first-ever shooting death inside a Toronto high school.
