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Son pleads not guilty to murder charge

Court

Donovan Penner, the Selma Park man charged with second-degree murder in the death of his mother, pleaded not guilty last week in Sechelt provincial court.

A preliminary hearing was set for Nov. 16 to 20 in Sechelt.

Crown prosecutor Trevor Cockfield said a trial by judge and jury would likely be set for a date in 2016 and would take place in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver.

Penner’s lawyer, Chris Johnson, said a psychiatrist would be examining his client before the preliminary hearing date.

“We want to explore the evidence at the preliminary inquiry because it’s quite clear that drugs, alcohol and mental illness were involved,” Johnson said Monday, adding he was still awaiting some pieces of evidence from the Crown.

Some of that pending evidence, Johnson said, included details of the cause of death, which he said was described only as blunt force trauma.

On Oct. 1, just before 1:30 a.m., Sunshine Coast RCMP and BC Ambulance Service arrived at a residence in the 5200 block of Selma Park Road in the District of Sechelt. They found the body of 67-year-old Esme LaChance, whose injuries appeared to be consistent with foul play.

Penner, 47, was located and arrested at the scene.

Penner appeared in court on Jan. 21 by video link to enter his not-guilty plea. He is being held in custody at the North Fraser Pretrial Centre in Port Coquitlam.