deadmonton 2004 - matthew hoover

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Matthew Hoover, 21, was shot to death August 7th, 2004.


Billy James Jardine, 24, was charged with first-degree murder.



Police Line: Do Not Cross

A car chase in west Edmonton between members of rival groups ended in the shooting death of one of the drivers.


Just before 2 a.m. on August 7th, 2004 a pickup truck and Ford Explorer were weaving in and out of traffic on 170th Street from St. Albert to Edmonton.


A 21-year-old man driving the pickup truck was shot several times by someone in the Explorer.


The pickup's driver, Matthew Hoover, was driven to the Sturgeon General Hospital and admitted with gunshot wounds to the back.


The Edmonton police gang unit was called in and they questioned the man who drove the wounded driver to hospital. They later put out a Canada-wide arrest warrant for Billy James Jardine, calling him "armed and dangerous."


Officers arrested Jardine a day later without incident after watching a west-end residence. Another 22-year-old man was taken into custody but was not charged.


A police spokesman said no weapons were recovered but officers did find an abandoned Ford Explorer in the Capilano area.


Jardine was charged with attempted murder in connection with Edmonton's 18th homicide of 2004.


On August 21st Hoover died of complications from multiple gunshot wounds. Jardine appeared in court August 23rd and was charged with first-degree murder. The charge was later reduced to manslaughter.



In October, 2005 Jardine pleaded guilty to being an accessory after the fact to manslaughter for helping the shooter leave the scene of the crime.


The Crown admitted there was no evidence to prove that Jardine, the Explorer's driver, knew his passenger had a gun or was going to shoot Hoover.



On January 20th, 2006 Jardine was sentenced to 18 months in jail.


Jardine did not cooperate with police with the identification of the shooter. To date, no one has been charged with Hoover's death.


One day after the shooting in 2004 there was another drive-by shooting outside a coffee shop near St. Albert. RCMP said the attack was in retaliation for the Hoover shooting.


Two men were arrested in the second incident and have yet to go on trial for attempted murder.