Magnotta enters not guilty plea in grisly slaying

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This article was published 20/06/2012 (5036 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

MONTREAL — Luka Magnotta uttered a single word during his first court appearance as he pleaded not guilty Tuesday to first-degree murder and four other charges.

The accused in the infamous body-parts case appeared calm. He answered his lawyer with a deep-toned, “Okay,” but remained silent as he stood during his three-minute appearance.

Magnotta, under heavy security since his arrival in Canada on Monday, appeared via video link. He will reappear in court in the same virtual form on Thursday, when his lawyer may request a psychiatric evaluation.

He was formally charged Tuesday with the first-degree murder of university student Jun Lin, along with defiling his corpse, harassing Prime Minister Stephen Harper and members of Parliament, and publishing and mailing obscene material.

Magnotta is accused of mailing Lin’s body parts to different places including the Ottawa offices of the Conservative Party of Canada, the Liberal Party of Canada and two Vancouver schools. He is also accused of posting a video of the crime on the Internet.

The accused was impassive as he appeared onscreen at the courthouse, while he was standing at a police station in a different part of the city, flanked by a guard and handcuffed.

The 29-year-old arrived in Canada Monday, shackled as he was returned from Germany aboard a military plane to face justice in a case that has drawn international attention.

The Crown has assigned two of its most seasoned prosecutors to the case. Louis Bouthillier and Helene Di Salvo have worked on a number of high-profile cases. Di Salvo successfully prosecuted former world-champion boxer Dave Hilton in 2001 for molesting his daughters.

Bouthillier said he doesn’t worry about finding an impartial jury to hear the case.

“Juries have been handling tough matters in this country for hundreds of years and I fail to see why they couldn’t handle (this),” Bouthillier said.

Appearing before Quebec court Judge Lori-Renee Weitzman, Magnotta’s lawyer, Pierre Panaccio, mentioned the possibility of requesting a psychiatric evaluation for his client.

If he asks for that assessment, it will seek to determine whether the accused was suffering from a mental disorder and whether he should be exempted from criminal responsibility.

If the assessment is granted by the judge, Magnotta would be sent to a psychiatric facility for not more than 30 days, after which a report would be filed.

Panaccio, a veteran lawyer who has defended Hells Angels bikers, spoke to Magnotta through a camera in the courtroom. He told his client he hoped to speak with him later Tuesday.

“If you wish to call me at home tonight, I’d be pleased to talk about this,” Panaccio told Magnotta.

“Okay,” the accused replied in a low voice before being led away.

The prosecution will decide on a strategy after hearing from Magnotta’s lawyer.

Magnotta is not likely to appear in court in person soon. Bouthillier said that would likely happen during a preliminary hearing or potential trial.

The prosecutors said they would not hold more media interviews, to avoid feeding a circus-like atmosphere. Reporters and onlookers lined up for hours outside the courtroom Monday to witness a brief step in what foreign media have dubbed the “Canadian psycho” case.

The heightened interest forced officials to open a second room for those who couldn’t fit into the courtroom. A half-dozen Grade 7 students were among the group in the lineup.

The students were not accompanied by an adult and they said it was not a school trip. Still, they described the goal of the visit as purely educational.

Nykolas, 13, who hopes to be a lawyer, said he wanted to see how the defence operates. “I want to see how his lawyer chooses to defend him.”

Magnotta was arrested earlier this month in a Berlin Internet café while reading news stories about himself.

— The Canadian Press