Accused North Delta murderer Beatrice Thomas was partying with two friends and her common-law husband Quannah O’Soup the night she stabbed him to death, Crown prosecutors say.
Thomas, 38, is currently on trial for second-degree murder in connection with O’Soup’s death on July 3, 2011.
The Crown’s theory is that Thomas and O’Soup were at their home near 115 Street and 80 Avenue with two others who were staying at the house at the time. The four were drinking and all except one of the friends had also been smoking crack cocaine, said Crown prosecutor Jennifer Lopes in her opening statement Tuesday at B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster.
It was just after midnight when it’s alleged Thomas and O’Soup got into an altercation. Lopes contended the two had gone into the living room, leaving their friends in the kitchen, when Thomas was overheard verbally confronting O’Soup. There were “noises” and a “crash,” Lopes said, and the two friends entered the living room to find O’Soup lying on the floor.
Lopes said O’Soup suffered a single stab wound to his left chest that punctured his lung and heart. The 38-year-old succumbed to his injury at the scene and Thomas was arrested.
Two of Thomas’s kids were at home at the time, but did not witness the murder.
The Crown told Justice Trevor Armstrong it will prove Thomas intended to kill O’Soup, based on a “constellation” of circumstantial evidence including the couple’s interaction leading up to the death, alleged statements Thomas made about her unhappiness with O’Soup, what others in the house overheard that evening, and Thomas’s actions after the incident.
Sgt. David Winderg, with the RCMP’s forensics section, was the first witness called at trial. He testified attending the duplex in North Delta shortly after the murder, entering the home to find a male lying face up on the living room floor with his shirt off. There was “very little blood,” he said.
Winderg said he took photographs at the scene, and the next day, took pictures of Thomas’s clothing. He saw no blood on her jacket, blouse or bra and a small red smear on her shorts. Winderg said he also photographed Thomas, who was in custody.
Defence lawyer Victoria Desroches questioned his assertion that he didn’t notice any injuries on Thomas, noting she remained fully clothed, and wore a jacket and slippers. Winderg said he only looked for injuries on her hands, and could only see her legs from the knee to ankle.
Thomas sat quietly beside Desroches throughout the court proceedings. She is not in custody.
The trial is expected to continue through next week.
