After being adjourned just before it was supposed to start in January, the trial of 49-year-old Donovan Penner on charges of second-degree murder has been delayed to early 2018.
Penner was arrested Oct. 1, 2014 at the Selma Park home where his mother, 67-year-old Esme LaChance, was found dead by police and ambulance crews responding to a 911 call. He pleaded not guilty, and was committed to trial following a preliminary hearing in November 2015.
Penner’s trial was adjourned Jan. 3, just as it was scheduled to begin, after his lawyer informed the court that he had been dismissed by his client.
Penner has appeared in B.C. Supreme Court in Vancouver several times since January to set a new date for the trial, most recently on March 15. At that appearance a pre-trial conference was set for Dec. 14, but the trial itself is not expected to begin until Feb. 13, 2018.
