SaskatoonBrandin Brick wanted to tell his side of the story about why he shot James Chaisson. He got his chance in March. On Monday, he found out the judge did not believe him.’I frankly find this unbelievable’: Justice Timothy KeeneDan Zakreski · CBC News · Posted: Aug 18, 2025 3:13 PM EDT | Last Updated: August 18Brandin Brick was convicted of second-degree murder in 2020, but successfully appealed for a new trial. Now, he has been convicted again on the same charge. (Saskatoon Police Service)Telling the story of a fatal shooting in his own words did not help a Saskatoon man accused of murder.Brandin Brick was convicted in 2020 of second-degree murder in the fatal shooting of James Chaisson two years earlier. He successfully appealed that conviction in 2023, partly because his lawyer had advised him against testifying.The 33-year-old took the stand this past March at his second judge-alone trial at Court of King’s Bench.On Monday, Justice Timothy Keene convicted Brick of second-degree murder again.”The judge today accepted the Crown’s evidence that that killing happened essentially in cold blood. That he did it basically out of a desire to kill someone who was in a different gang than him,” prosecutor Cory Bliss said outside court. Sask. top court overturns gang member murder conviction it describes as ‘miscarriage of justice’ In a 102-page judgment, Keene explained why he never believed Brick’s version about what happened inside a car near a 7-Eleven on Valentine’s Day in 2018. Brick, a member of the Terror Squad, said he was there to sell drugs to Chaisson, a member of a rival gang.”The mechanics of this shooting make the accused’s evidence unbelievable,” Keene said.Brick testified that Chaisson had gotten into the backseat of the car to buy drugs but that, as he drove away, Chaisson pulled a sawed-off .22 rifle from a backpack, shoved it into Brick’s ribs and demanded drugs. Brick said he slammed on the brakes, catching Chaisson of guard and making him drop his rifle.”[This allowed] the accused to reach down under the driver’s seat and get his sawed-off .22 single shot gun, turn and take ‘a clean shot’ at Mr. Chaisson,” Keene said.”The accused’s version in cross-examination seems to defy physics.”Brick will be back in court Sept. 15 for sentencing submissions.A second-degree murder conviction carries an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for at least 10 years. Bliss said that, given Brick’s lengthy criminal record and that the offence involved a firearm, he would be arguing for parole ineligibility beyond the 10-year minimum.ABOUT THE AUTHORDan Zakreski is a reporter for CBC Saskatoon.
Judge rejects accused killer’s version of shooting at retrial for 2nd-degree murder
