The Crown is appealing the acquittal of Kurt Churchill, and seeking a new murder trial for him in the 2020 shooting death of Jamie Coady.

Churchill was accused of shooting Coady to death on Craigmillar Avenue in July of 2020.

But the trial came to an abrupt end on September 12 when Justice Vikas Khaladkar entered a stay of proceedings—ruling the trial had eclipsed the reasonable amount of time it should’ve taken to finish.

The Crown had 30 days to file its notice of appeal, and did so last week, arguing the judge didn’t pin enough of the trial delays on the defence.

They allege further delays were caused by the judge’s own order to disclose confidential material to the defence, albeit in camera—triggering other applications and private hearings spread out over several months.

The remedy for those errors, the Crown says, is to allow the appeal and order a new trial.

Churchill would’ve walked away a free man after the stay was entered, if he hadn’t been sitting in a Toronto jail charged with sexual assault. Few details are known about that incident, other than it happened at a hotel in early August.

Churchill did make bail, with a promise to reside and keep the peace here, while that case proceeds up there.