CALGARY — Alberta’s top court has upheld the conviction of a man who killed a Calgary Stampeders football player outside a Calgary nightclub in 2016.
Three Court of Appeal justices unanimously dismissed the appeal of Nelson Lugela, who was found guilty of second-degree murder last year in the death of Mylan Hicks.
Hicks, a 23-year-old player on the practice roster of the Canadian Football League team, was shot twice outside the Marquee Beer Market, where he and his teammates were celebrating a win over the Winnipeg Blue Bombers.
Lugela argued the trial judge erred by allowing social media photographs showing he had access to a handgun and by failing to test the admissibility of witness statements identifying him as the shooter.
He also argued in his appeal that the judge misapplied that standard of proof beyond a reasonable doubt and gave an unreasonable verdict.
The Appeal Court justices say in their decision that Lugela failed to satisfy them that there is any basis to interfere with the trial judge’s conviction.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published on Sept. 30, 2020.
The Canadian Press
