Peter Khill leaves the Hamilton courthouse in a June 11, 2018, file photo. Khill was found not guilty in 2018 of second-degree murder in the death of Jon Styres of the Six Nations of the Grand River.Glenn Lowson/For The Globe and Mail
The Crown’s appeal of a Hamilton-area homeowner’s acquittal in the fatal shooting of an unarmed Indigenous man in 2016 is focused on the legalities of self-defence.
Peter Khill, of Binbrook, Ont., was found not guilty in 2018 of second-degree murder in the death of Jon Styres of the Six Nations of the Grand River in Southern Ontario.
Mr. Khill testified his training as a military reservist kicked in when he heard a noise outside his home in the early morning hours on Feb. 4, 2016, then grabbed his shotgun and loaded it.
He said he saw a shadowy figure leaning into his truck, then the man made a move with his hands – which is when Mr. Khill shot him twice.
Prosecutor Susan Reid said this morning at the Ontario Court of Appeal that the key question in the Crown’s case is, “Did the respondent act reasonably in lawful self-defence?”
She says part of the provisions of self-defence discuss what a “reasonable” person would do in the same situation, and Mr. Khill did not act reasonably.
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