Crown says teen should be found guilty of manslaughter as party to fatal stabbing of 16-year-old Halifax boyPublished Apr 16, 2025 • Last updated 7 hours ago • 5 minute readCrown attorney Sharon Goodwin speaks with reporters Wednesday while colleague Terry Nickerson looks on, after lawyers made closing arguments at a Dartmouth boy’s trial in Halifax youth court on a charge of second-degree murder. The Crown is seeking a conviction for the lesser offence of manslaughter. Photo by Steve BruceThe Crown is no longer seeking a murder conviction for a Dartmouth teen in connection with the killing of a 16-year-old Halifax boy almost a year ago.The 17-year-old boy was one of four young people charged with second-degree murder after the April 22, 2024, stabbing of Ahmad Maher Al Marrach during an altercation in a parking garage at Halifax Shopping Centre.THIS CONTENT IS RESERVED FOR SUBSCRIBERS ONLY.Subscribe now to access this story and more:Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsSUBSCRIBE TO UNLOCK MORE ARTICLES.Subscribe or sign in to your account to continue your reading experience.Unlimited access to the website and appExclusive access to premium content, newsletters and podcastsFull access to the e-Edition app, an electronic replica of the print edition that you can share, download and comment onEnjoy insights and behind-the-scenes analysis from our award-winning journalistsSupport local journalists and the next generation of journalistsRegister to unlock more articles.Create an account or sign in to continue your reading experience.Access additional stories every monthShare your thoughts and join the conversation in our commenting communityGet email updates from your favourite authorsSign In or Create an AccountorArticle contentThe identities of all four accused are protected under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.The Dartmouth boy’s trial got underway in Halifax youth court in January and sat for about two weeks before the Crown closed its case.The boy took the stand in his own defence March 31 and testified over three days.Judge Elizabeth Buckle heard closing arguments Wednesday after the Crown confirmed it was now seeking a conviction for the lesser offence of manslaughter.The judge reserved her decision until June 27.The other three teens charged in the case have entered guilty pleas.A 15-year-old Lower Sackville boy pleaded guilty in January to committing second-degree murder by stabbing Ahmad in the chest. A 15-year-old Lower Sackville girl and a 17-year-old Halifax boy both pleaded guilty in October to manslaughter for their involvement in the homicide.According to text messages entered into evidence at trial, the Dartmouth boy agreed to meet Ahmad in the mall parkade for a one-on-one fight over a girl they both had been dating.Article contentThe accused, who was 16 at the time, showed up with two male friends and a girl, who recorded video of much of the altercation on her cellphone. The incident was also captured on surveillance video.As planned by the accused, the other two boys jumped into the fight within seconds of it starting. After being punched and kicked by the trio for about 55 seconds, Ahmad got back on his feet.The accused testified he thought the fight was over at that point because he and Ahmad had resolved their beef.“Are you done?” he can be heard yelling at Ahmad. “Walk away now.”But the altercation continued. One of the accused’s companions demanded Ahmad hand over his sneakers. A few moments later, the Lower Sackville boy began fighting with Ahmad.Ahmad quickly placed the Lower Sackville boy in a headlock. That prompted the girl to shout “get the f— off my man.” She pushed the pair to the ground and kicked Ahmad in the head multiple times.After several of Ahmad’s friends arrived in the parkade, the accused said he removed a knife he always carried in his backpack for protection and held it at his side.Article contentHe said he moved toward the fight and used one of his feet to try to push Ahmad away from his friend.Ahmad got up and went toward his friends, so the accused said he began putting his knife away.“It seems like it’s all ended again,” he said of the altercation.“I’m looking away from everyone, my back turned, and I see a bit of commotion out of the side of my eye.”Surveillance videos show that the Lower Sackville girl fell to the ground when Ahmad tried to stop her from taking his backpack. The Lower Sackville boy then stepped towards Ahmad and plunged a knife into his chest.The accused said he didn’t see the stabbing occur. He saw Ahmad holding his chest and hopping over a concrete barrier before dropping to one knee and then collapsing onto his back.He said he told Ahmad’s friends to call 911 before he walked over to the victim and bent down to comfort him. He said he held Ahmad’s head, saying “stay with me” and “breathe.”“When I was standing over him, holding onto his head, I’m pretty sure he died,” he said of Ahmad.Article contentThe accused and the Halifax boy walked away and boarded a bus at the transit terminal on the opposite side of Mumford Road. Police stopped the bus on North Street in Halifax about 20 minutes after the stabbing and arrested the two boys.The accused said he did not intend for Ahmad to be seriously injured in the three-on-one fight. He said he did not know his friends would be carrying knives, that they would try to rob Ahmad or that the Lower Sackville boy would stab the victim. Defence lawyer Anna Mancini leaves Halifax youth court Wednesday after making closing arguments at a Dartmouth boy’s trial on a charge of second-degree murder. The Crown is seeking a conviction for the lesser offence of manslaughter, but Mancini says her client should be found not guilty. Photo by Steve BruceIn closing submissions Thursday, Crown attorney Sharon Goodwin said the evidence showed the accused was guilty of manslaughter as a party to the killing. Goodwin said the boy aided, abetted, was a co-principal and had a common unlawful purpose to commit an offence that ultimately resulted in a manslaughter.But defence lawyer Anna Mancini argued her client is not criminally liable for anything that went on after the initial three-on-one fight.“(He) went to go have a fistfight that day,” Mancini said. “He had no idea, he did not foresee, that his friend … would stab Ahmad. It was not part of any plan. It was not supposed to happen, and it should not have happened.Article content“To extend criminal liability to (the accused) in these circumstances would, I submit, be unjust. There is no pathway of criminal liability that has been established beyond a reasonable doubt. Therefore, I submit the court must find (him) not guilty on the offence of manslaughter.”Outside court, Goodwin explained why she and co-counsel Terry Nickerson and Sarah Kirby changed course and decided to pursue a manslaughter conviction.“This trial ran for several weeks over several months,” Goodwin told reporters. “After a careful review of the evidence, the Crown determined that we can’t meet the mental element required for second-degree murder, which is that he intended to cause the death.“But what we could rely on was that it was objectively foreseeable that he intended to cause bodily harm, which is the test for manslaughter.”Goodwin was asked to comment on the complexity of a case like this.“I’m sure that the facts for the public probably don’t appear as complex as the legal arguments have been in court,” she said. “We have three Crown attorneys on this file and we have all been working incredibly hard over the last year to try to bring justice to the victim.Article content“There were many layers, many complexities, even in the closings today. Although it might appear easy on the surface, these issues invoked a lot of complex areas of the law.”The Lower Sackville girl was sentenced April 3 to 27 months of intensive rehabilitative custody and supervision. She will remain in custody at the Nova Scotia Youth Centre in Waterville for the first three months, followed by two years of close supervision in the community.The other two sentencing hearings are scheduled for June. The Lower Sackville boy’s murder conviction carries an automatic penalty of four years in custody and three years of supervision in the community.Article content
Crown no longer seeking murder conviction at Dartmouth youth’s trial
