Closing arguments wrap in murder trial of Calgary teen charged in shooting of 16-year-old

Closing arguments took place Tuesday in the second-degree murder trial for a young man accused in the fatal shooting of a 16-year-old three years ago.

Two starkly different narratives emerged Tuesday during closing arguments in the second-degree murder trial of the teen, now 18-year-old, accused in the fatal shooting of 16-year-old Jal Acor Jal three years ago.

The defence argued Jal had his finger on the trigger and was accidentally shot while the two struggled over a gun.

The Crown, however, painted a more calculated picture, alleging the victim was ambushed and shot in the back of the head.

The accused cannot be identified because he was 15 years old at the time of the incident near the Crowfoot LRT station in the northwest on March 31, 2022.

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He claims he befriended Jal online and met to show him a gun he’d purchased from a stranger on Snapchat.

The teen claims he feared for his life because he heard Jal load the rifle and saw him turn towards him with his hands gripping the handgrip and foregrip.

“He didn’t feel safe at that point and made the decision to charge at the gun,” said defense lawyer Andrea Urquhart.

The teen said the the pair struggled over the gun, Jal tripped, and the gun went off while the victim was falling backwards.

He claims he did not shoot Jal and didn’t have his hands on the gun when it went off.

Crown argues death couldn’t have been accidental

The Crown refutes the teen’s description of what took place and claims the evidence tells a more sinister story.

“The manner of death was deliberate and could not have been accidental,” said Todd Buziak.

Court heard the bullet entered the left side of Jal’s skull and exited through his right eyebrow.

The Crown said the muzzle of the gun would have had to be directly behind the victim’s head and couldn’t have occurred if he was falling backward as the accused claims.

The defense argued the court’s theory fails to take into consideration how the pair’s height difference may have impacted the trajectory of the bullet, with the accused, who was roughly five-foot-eight at the time, and the victim who was around six-foot-three.

“Bullets travel in a straight line,” said Buziak.

“You approached, you put the gun to the back of the head, and you shot Mr. Jal.”

The Crown did give notice to the court that if convicted, it will be seeking an adult sentence.

Justice Paul Jeffrey will deliver his verdict at a later date.

‘We can’t get him back’

More than a dozen of Jal’s family and friends attended the trial Thursday, with many wearing T-shirts with his picture on them.

“Jal is an awesome kid. He’s lovely. He’s my best friend. He shared everything,” said his mother, Susie Jal.

Jal was the second born, with two sisters and two brothers.

“It’s hard. They’re holding up, but it’s not easy to grieve,” said his mother. “We can’t get him back. We miss him every day.”

Jal played basketball and football at St. Francis High School and had shared dreams about going to the U.S. one day to play professionally.

“He was very friendly and a lot of people love him and a lot of people can testify he was a kind person and genuine and really loved a lot of people,” said his aunt Hachan Jal.

Jal said the trial has been difficult on the family and they are coming to grips with the reality they will never really know what happened to Jal or why.

“We’re not given exactly what really happened. We’re hearing one side; we’re not hearing, unfortunately, both sides,” she said. “I’m hoping to get justice.”