Court of Queen's Bench Justice Bryan Mahoney has granted a change of venue to Jeremy Steinke, a 24-year-old man from Alberta, Canada, who is accused of murdering his girlfriend's family.
During Wednesday's court proceeding, Mahoney contended that it would be impossible to find an impartial jury in Medicine Hat, citing widespread publicity and the November 2007 conviction of Steinke's girlfriend, 14-year-old Jasmine Richardson. As a result of Mahoney's ruling, the trial will now be held in Alberta, a city located approximately 750 miles from Medicine Hat.
"It's just better to get it out of here where it's more insular," Steinke's lawyer, Alain Hepner, told CBC.ca following the hearing. "There's a bigger jury pool to draw from, and they're less affected by the horrific crime that was perpetrated."
Although she had anticipated that Mahoney would grant the ruling, Crown prosecutor Stephanie Cleary opposed the change of venue.
"There's been an extraordinary amount of media coverage, and the justice was obviously very concerned with that, so I honestly can't say I'm surprised at all by this ruling," Cleary said in an interview with CBC.ca.
Cleary was not the only one opposed to the move. Speaking with Calsun.Canoe.ca, Medicine Hat Police Chief Gord Earl complained that the venue change would not be an easy adjustment. He stated, "We just need to adapt and live with that, but it's not without some angst with regard to how we're going to accommodate the manpower and financial commitment that it's going to take."
A formal trial date will be scheduled sometime next month. However, the case is not expected to begin until October of this year.
Steinke and Richardson were originally arrested in April 2006 for the murder of Richardson's father, mother, and eight-year-old brother. Following her trial last fall, Richardson became the youngest person ever convicted of multiple murders in Canada.
For more information on this case, read the Investigation Discovery feature story, Jasmine Richardson: The Youngest Person Ever Charged with Multiple Counts of Murder in Canada.