B.C. murder accused acquitted after judge excludes confession

Frederick Charlie, accused of killing his common-law wife Vanessa Terry near Agassiz in April 2024, has been found not guilty after a B.C. Supreme Court judge excluded his statements to police. The B.C. Prosecution Service said the Crown called no evidence in Charlie’s judge-only trial.

Justice Palbinder Shergill ruled July 7 that the confession was inadmissible because treatment by Integrated Homicide Investigation Team officers at the Chilliwack RCMP detachment in June 2024 unlawfully tainted it. The ruling was released Wednesday.

The judge found Charlie was made to change clothes in front of officers who knew he was not wearing underwear, and was placed with an undercover officer who deliberately urinated on himself nearby. Shergill also found police deprived Charlie of sleep and persisted in questioning despite his assertions of the right to remain silent.

Shergill said Charlie’s personal circumstances, including limited formal education and lack of sophistication in dealing with the justice system, were important in assessing whether his statements were voluntary. The judge concluded the detention conditions were cumulatively oppressive and undermined his meaningful ability to choose whether to speak.

Defence lawyer Justin Dosanjh said the rules governing voluntariness protect people in police custody. The Integrated Homicide Investigation Team did not immediately respond to a request for comment.