After waiting 3yrs for trial, man has to wait more

After spending three years behind bars awaiting trial, thirty-three year old Ted Armstrong had his day in court. Unfortunately for him, all that came of it was… more waiting time because prejudicial statements by police caused Justice Michelle Arana to discharge the jury and order a retrial. Armstrong is accused of fatally stabbing Jerome Longsworth on July fourteenth, 2006. Armstrong was allegedly beating his sister when Longsworth intervened and told him it was unnecessary. At that point Armstrong reportedly pulled out a pair of scissors and threatened to kill Longsworth, who then grabbed a piece of stick to defend himself. Longsworth took off with Armstrong in hot pursuit. But he soon tripped and fell in a hole. Armstrong moved in and allegedly delivered a fatal stab wound to Longsworth’s neck with the scissors.

When Sergeant Ernel Dominguez took the stand in court today, he testified that Armstrong admitted to committing the murder in his Caution Statement. But Justice Arana had two problems with his testimony; one of them being that Dominguez never mentioned the caution statement when the case started in 2006. The second issue was that Armstrong actually said “Someone was beating me in my yard, they chase me and then attacked me and then I attacked the person”, which does not amount to a confession. Another officer, PC E. McFadzean, claimed in court that Armstrong ran when he arrived at the scene because villagers were chasing him. According to McFadzean, Armstrong told him he was being chased because he stabbed Longsworth.