Anthony Bilodeau is expected to take charge in his second-degree murder trial on Wednesday.
On Tuesday, the Crown ended its case by summoning its last witness.
Anthony’s lawyer, Brian Beresh, made an initial statement and told the jury they could expect to hear from his client on Wednesday.
Beresh went on to claim that Anthony was acting in self-defense in March 2020 when Jacob Sansom and Maurice Cardinal were assassinated.
“There was probably an angel looking at him with misfortune,” Bilodeau said of his client.
“And it takes the form of the CNRL video,” he said, referring to a black-and-white security video showing the confrontation between the two sides.
The trial for second-degree murder of Anthony and his father, Roger Bilodeau, has been reduced to just 11 jurors as it comes to an end.
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On Tuesday, the 6th day of the trial began with Judge Eric Macklin informing the court that two jurors had tested positive for COVID-19 and a third was also ill.
Macklin ordered rehearsals for the remaining jurors and the jury officer. While the remaining 11 jurors tested negative for the virus, the officer tested positive.
Read more: Jury hears man charged with second-degree murder in Alberta hunter death
The trial was adjourned until a substitute agent could be brought in.
Originally, 16 jurors were chosen for the 10-day trial.
On the first day, two jurors were excused when one tested positive for COVID-19 and another raised scheduling issues with their work.
1:51 The jury hears the father and son on the 5th day of the trial for murder of Métis hunters The jury hears the father and son on the 5th day of the trial for the murder of Métis hunters
If the jury is less than 10 jurors, there will be a null judgment.
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So far, the trial has heard that Jacob Sansom and his uncle Maurice Cardinal were hunting near the Glendon area on March 27, 2020.
They shot an ant about two and a half hours northeast of Edmonton and went to a friend’s house to skin him.
The group socialized and drank alcohol for several hours.
Finally, Sansom and Cardinal left, leaving in Sansom’s Dodge truck.
Read more: Father and son charged with killing Métis hunters in rural Alberta plead not guilty
Members of the Bilodeau family have stated that that night they saw a truck stop near the edge of their property.
Roger Bilodeau’s teenage son said the truck was there for “less than a minute.”
The son, who was 16 at the time, said he had seen a vehicle before that day that he did not recognize driving on his road. He stated that he found it suspicious as there had recently been a crime in the area.
When they saw a truck later that night, Roger and the teenager got into their truck and chased the unknown vehicle.
Finally, the two trucks stopped on a country road. There was a fight between the two groups.
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Shortly afterwards, Roger’s eldest son, Anthony, stopped after his father called him and asked him to carry a gun.
In both statements to police and witnesses, the jury has heard that Anthony shot and killed both Sansom and Cardinal.
On Tuesday, the jury heard Anthony’s audio statement to police. In it, the police ask directly if Anthony knows anything about the death of Sansom and the Cardinal.
The accused can be heard telling the police that he knows nothing and that the night the hunters were killed, Anthony returned home from work, put his daughter to bed and went to bed shortly afterwards.
The trial is set to begin on Wednesday.
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