2 liars and 3 murders: trial wraps up in Red Deer

Jason Klaus and Joshua Frank are liars.

That's the one thing all the lawyers agreed on in their closing argumentsWednesday at the two men'striple-murder trial in Red Deer.

Klaus and Frank are each charged with three counts of first-degree murder in the December2013 deaths of Gordon, Sandra and Monica Klaus.

Defence lawyers usually try to portray their clients in the best possible light. Which makes some of the statements made in this case to Court of Queen's Bench Justice Eric Macklinunique.

• Jason Klaus, accused in triple-murder case, blames his friend for killings
• Joshua Frank testifies Jason Klaus murdered his family

Calgary defence lawyer Allan Fay represented Klaus.

"My client lied," Fay said. "There's no doubt about it. But they paled in number and comparison to the lies told by Frank."

He argued Klaus is innocent, and pointed the finger of blame at Frank.

"We can believe it was he who killed the Klaus family and he who burned the house down."

Fay called Frank's testimony"atapestry of lies woven by a man who's a constant liar."

When Frank's lawyer, Tonii Roulston, launched into her closing argument, she took direct aim at Klaus.

"I think he fancies himself as a mastermind, but he's just not a very smart one," Roulston said.

"Had he kept his mouth shut, in general, he probably would have got away with this."

Roulston admitted Frank is also a perpetual liar who even "lies about lying." But she used that admissionto suggest the judge should consider the confession Frank made to 'Mr. Big' in an undercover police operation as yet another lie.

"In order to convict Mr. Frank, you have to believe what Mr. Frank said in the Mr. Big," Roulston said. "He's unreliable. And that's the difficulty. But if you don't believe him, we are in a position where this court ought to acquit.

"I know that seems strange. But this case is strange."

Roulston argued, "The crown has not proven beyond a reasonable doubt that Mr. Frank was the shooter nor that he planned the killing of the Klaus family."

The other defence lawyer, Allan Fay, argued Frank is the one who should be found guilty.

"We can believe it was he who killed the Klaus family and he who burned the house down," Fay said.

Proof beyond a reasonable doubt

Prosecutor Douglas Taylor told the packed Red Deer courtroom he believes they have proven their first-degree murder case beyond a reasonable doubt.

He asked the judge to find both men "guilty of the planned and deliberate murders of Gordon Klaus, Sandra Klaus and Monica Klaus."

Taylor argued Klaus planned the murders with his friend Frank by offering him money. He said Klaus gave Frank the gun and ammunition, drove him to the Klaus farmhouse that night, then drove away and waited while Frank walked down the lane on his own.

The Crown wants the judge to find that Frank killed Klaus's family members with shots to the head, then burned down the house in an attempt to destroy evidence of the crime.

Crown's theory on motive

It's not necessary for a judge to decide on a motive in order to acquit or convict. But Taylor offered up the Crown's theory on what he thinks motivated the two accused.

"Simply put, Klaus's motive was his disdain for his family and the way in which he was being treated by his parents and sister. He was worried his forgery of cheques and theft of money from his parents would lead to him being marginalized and left on his own. With them gone, he could do what he wanted and the family farm would be his," Taylor said.

"Conversely, Frank's motive was unoriginal, yet pronouncedgreed for money, pure and simple. He was an unemployed destitute drug addict. He saw an opportunity for easy money and he took it."

The two accused sat expressionless in the prisoner's box throughout the day as the lawyers presented their final arguments.

The prosecutor argued that with all the lies told by both Klaus and Frank to police and on the witness stand only one version was repeated by both men.

Mr. Big

During the Mr. Big operation, Klaus admitted to one of the undercover officers that he hired Frank to commit the murders because he was worried about the forged cheques he wrote.

He admitted he drove Frank to the family farm and waited down the road while Frank shot his parents and sister. Then they abandoned a vehicle in a remote location 27 kilometres. away, and threw the truck keys into the ditch.

The next day, Frank threw the gun into the Battle River.

Klaus repeated the same story to Mr. Big. After he was arrested, he told the same version again at the end of a prolonged interrogation.

"Klaus told the same version of events to two people he thought were gangsters and another person who he knew was a police officer," Taylor observed.

When Frank met Mr. Big he repeated virtually the same story.

Afterwards Frank and Klaus were secretly videotaped. The prosecutor said their conversation was revealing.

"No reasonable person would watch the way they interacted with each other ... and conclude anything other than this: These two men were happy and relieved that they had finally found a way to get away with murder."

After the confession to Mr. Big, Klaus was able to lead investigators to the spot where the key was thrown in the ditch and they retrieved it.

Frank showed undercover officers where he threw the gun. A dive team later recovered the weapon.

Verdict in the new year

There is a small mountain of evidence for Justice Macklin to wade through. He has reserved his decision until January 10, 2018.

"It's been a long six weeks," Macklin said.