deadmonton 2004 - donald charles hanscom
Donald Charles Hanscom, 57, was shot to death July 30th, 2004.
Murray Archibald McClenaghan, 59, was charged with first-degree murder and possession of a dangerous weapon.
Donald Hanscom (left) was a part-owner of the Rock Placement Co., a landscaping firm located at 11649 199 Street on Edmonton's western outskirts.
On the morning of July 30th, 2004 his dead body was found at the company's site.
Police charged Murray McClenaghan, Hanscom's business partner, with first-degree murder and possession of a dangerous weapon.
Ongoing developments | latest update.
On January 17th, 2006 opening statements were made in McClenaghan's trial.
The crown alleged that McClenaghan met Hanscom on the company's property and fired three shotgun blasts into his body. McClenaghan then fled in his truck, later turning himself in at the RCMP detachment in Mayerthorpe, 135 kilometres (85 miles) northwest of Edmonton.
McClenaghan (left) was overheard speaking to a member of the Mayerthorpe detachment, saying he had "shot someone with a shotgun in Edmonton this morning."
The officer McClenaghan spoke to, Constable Lionide Johnston, could not be called to the stand. He was one of four RCMP officers killed in a shootout with James Roszko on March 3rd, 2005.
An Edmonton Police Service crime scene investigator testified that he examined McClenaghan's truck and found a shotgun with one spent cartridge in the chamber and another loose round in the cab. Two spent shotgun shells were found near Hanscom's body. A second weapon, a .22-calibre rifle, was also found in the truck.
Police later seized several other weapons and 1,000 rounds of ammunition from McClenaghan's home. Found in a closet were three long-barrelled firearms while ten more were discovered in a home office safe. Also recovered were two plane tickets for McClenaghan and another male for travel to Vancouver with departure dated the day of the shooting.
The Crown suggested the business was having financial problems and that Hanscom wanted to buy McClenaghan out. Tension over the negotiations was observed by others. Testimony by employees characterised McClenaghan's demeanor as unusual and he appeared "stressed out" in the weeks prior to the murder.
Heavy rains during the summer of 2004 plagued the company, and several installations fell behind schedule. A break in on July 29th caused Hanscom to stay overnight at the firm's rock yard. He told employees he was meeting McClenaghan early the next day.
Testifying in his own defense, McClenaghan told the court "I don't remember ... it's just like a vacuum. I don't know how to explain it. It's like nothing. Zero. No light, no noise, no nothing."
Court heard that the accused remembers going to work on the morning of July 30th and having a brief discussion with the victim but said the next thing he recalls is kneeling beside his pickup truck with his shotgun being "very, very close to me." McClenaghan said he knew he was responsible stating, "At the end of the day, I know I must have done it."
McClenaghan also told the jury he was under a lot of stress because the company was in financial trouble and he was in the midst of arranging to have Hanscom buy him out. However, according to McClenaghan, Hanscom didn't have the required documentation ready and an argument erupted.
"Don walked away and said: 'F--k you. The first thing you learn in business is to look after your own ass first'," testified McClenaghan. McClenaghan said that's the last thing he can remember. He woke from the daze kneeling alongside his truck with the gun lying nearby, sped off in his truck, spending hours aimlessly driving along country roads, eventually ending up in Mayerthorpe where he turned himself in to RCMP.
Court also heard that McClenaghan suffered from bouts of depression, with episodes dating back to the 1980s. A doctor had previously threatened to take away his licence to operate heavy equipment.
Two mental health experts were called to testify. The Crown was surprised when their forensic psychiatric expert sided with a peer called for the defense. Both psychologist Leslie Block and Dr. Otakar Caesky, a forensic psychiatrist, agreed that McClenaghan can't recall firing the fatal shots.
"He was in a bubble ... a trance-like state," Block told the jury, citing stress, anxiety and depression that had built up in McClenaghan over several months to the point where he entered a dream-like state the day he killed Hanscom.
Dr. Caesky, who only recently got involved in the case, admitted many people charged with a crime try to evade responsibility by claiming they blacked out but ultimately agreed with Block's assessment. Caesky formed his opinion after listening to McClenaghan testify.
Caesky told the court that three things triggered McClenaghan's "dissociative state" on the morning of the murder: the break-in at the company, Hanscom's lack of promised paperwork and his swearing and walking away.
At the close of the trial, Crown prosecutor John Watson urged the jury to find McClenaghan guilty of first-degree murder. Watson said driving to the rockyard with the loaded gun, aiming at Hanscom and firing three times prove it was a planned killing. If McClenaghan was in a trance-like state that day, Watson argued, he entered it after the shooting because of realising the magnitude of what he had done.
Defence lawyer Laura Stevens urged the jury to find McClenaghan not criminally responsible due to a mental disorder. Stevens said his actions on the day of the shooting -- taking a shotgun instead of a long-range weapon, loading the gun with buckshot and birdshot while making no effort to keep the shooting a secret -- prove the killing was not planned or intended.
On February 1st, 2006 a 7-woman 5-man jury reached a verdict after less than four hours of deliberation. McClenaghan was found to be guilty of manslaughter and possession of a weapon but was found not criminally responsible for Hanscom's death.
McClenaghan was placed under the care of the Alberta Hospital where a psychiatrict assessment conducted by the Alberta Review Board would determine his fate.
Ongoing Developments
- March 1st, 2006 - Alberta Review Board hearing.
- March 2nd, 2006 - Crown files motion to appeal verdict.
- March 10th, 2006 - Alberta Review Board issues written decision.
On March 1st, 2006 Don Hanscom's Gayle attended a mental-health review board hearing to read a victim impact statement to a panel considering whether her husband's killer, Murray McClenaghan, should remain in Alberta Hospital.
The five-member panel also heard a psychiatric report that stated McClenaghan needs further assessment and treatment. McClenaghan's lawyer agreed a six-month stay was necessary.
Dr. Alberto Choy told the board McClenaghan could receive day passes from the hospital, as long as he is escorted by a staff member or responsible adult, such as his wife.
In her statement, Gayle Hanscom described McClenaghan as a manipulative, arrogant bully. She said his claim that he can't remember the shooting is "unbelievable."
"If Murray is released, I fear for my family's safety," she said. "He has a hair-trigger temper. I have witnessed it many times."
At the hearing McClenaghan addressed Gayle Hanscom, two of her three daughters and their husbands.
"There really isn't anyone that grieves Don's death more than me," McClenaghan said. He said his lawyer wouldn't allow him to say he was sorry before the trial.
Gayle then cried out: "Bullshit!"
Dr. Choy said McClenaghan had been diagnosed with a recurring form of major depression, and further assessment was needed to determine why he fell into a dissociative state at the time of the murder.
He said a treatment plan that included anti-depressants be developed and McClenaghan would likely have to be on medication for the rest of his life.
On March 2nd, 2006 the Crown's office filed a motion to appeal the verdict in McClenaghan's case.
The Crown alleged the trial judge made eight mistakes, such as telling the jury that a dissociative state could negate proof of intention in the case of second-degree murder, or negate proof of planning and deliberation in the case of first-degree murder.
Also alleged is that the trial judge didn't properly instruct the jury regarding the evidence that could be considered in charges of first-degree murder and second-degree murder.
The Crown is seeking to have the acquittal and verdict set aside and a new trial ordered on either first- or second-degree murder charges.
On March 10th, 2006 the Alberta Review Board issued a written decision that it considered Murray Archibald McClenaghan "a significant threat to the safety of the public."
The Board ordered McClenaghan to remain at Alberta Hospital for treatment, but he would be permitted ground trips and passes to leave the hospital under the supervision of staff or a responsible adult. He was also allowed to go on staff-supervised camping trips and recreational outings in Alberta.
The decision came after a court-mandated review of McClenaghan's case held March 1st.
McClenaghan's next review board hearing is to take place in August, 2006. Should McClenaghan not be found fit to re-enter society at that time, he would undergo regular reviews every 11 months.