The family of murdered eight-year-old Victoria Stafford erupted into cheers Monday after Ontario’s top court decided that the man convicted of killing her, Michael Rafferty, would not receive a new trial.
Victoria’s father, Rodney Stafford, told media outside the Toronto courthouse that the quick decision was an indication that justice had been served the first time around.
“All of the information that was put forth in 2012 landed him (Rafferty) where he was and that’s exactly where he deserves to be,” Stafford said. “He can go back and rot.”
In 2012, Rafferty was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for kidnapping, sexual assault causing bodily harm and first-degree murder in Victoria’s 2009 death.
Rafferty’s girlfriend at the time, Terri-Lynne McClintic, pleaded guilty to first-degree murder in 2010. She initially blamed Rafferty for killing the Woodstock, Ont. girl, but later admitted during Rafferty’s trial that she was the one who delivered the fatal blows.
Rafferty’s lawyer, Paul Calarco, argued Monday morning that the judge in his client’s trial made a number of errors, including failing to warn the jury against relying on McClintic’s testimony. In documents filed with the Ontario Court of Appeal, Calarco wrote that McClintic was “a person of unsavoury character, with a serious history of violence and lying.” The lawyer wrote that the worst charges against Rafferty were dependent “almost entirely” on McClintic’s evidence.
Calarco also argued in court that some of Rafferty’s actions after the murder, such as cleaning his car, disposing of clothing and providing a false alibi, were “equally consistent” with being an accessory after the fact.
After Rafferty’s appeal was dismissed Monday, Calarco told reporters that he couldn’t speculate about whether or not his client might take his case to the Supreme Court of Canada.
Crown lawyers Howard Leibovich and Randy Schwartz argued in documents filed with the court that there was significant evidence against Rafferty that reinforced McClintic’s testimony.
“Her (McClintic’s) testimony was supported by a compelling body of confirmatory evidence, including surveillance video footage; cellphone records; cell tower location data; forensic evidence; and analysis of the victim's blood and DNA from the appellant's car," the lawyers wrote.
The panel of three judges dismissed Rafferty’s appeal before they heard arguments by the Crown opposing the new trial.
CTV legal analyst Boris Bytensky told CTV News Channel on Monday that he wasn’t surprised by the court’s decision. He also said that it’s common for anyone convicted of first-degree murder to appeal their conviction any way they can.
“It was the best shot they (Rafferty’s defence) could make,” Bytensky said.
Rodney Stafford said he was glad the appeal was dismissed so quickly and the family wouldn’t have to go through another trial.
“We can move forward now and continue working on ourselves,” Stafford said.
With files from The Canadian Press
