Double murder trial hears of estate dispute

Jurors in a double murder trial heard Thursday about an ongoing dispute over the estate of one of the victim's grandparents.

Kelly Clarke, 41, is accused of killing Joel Labossiere, 34, and his wife, Magdalena, 33. The couple was found shot in their St. Vital home April 20 2008 andClarke has pleaded not guilty to first-degree murder in those deaths.

On Thursday, jurors heard about a dispute over the estate of victim Joel Labossiere's grandparents: Rita and Ferdinand. They, along with Joel's brother Remi, also were found shot to death three years earlier in 2005 on the family farm near St. Leon.

Thursday, Joel laboissiere's cousin Daniel gave evidence that his uncle Denis Labossiere had been contesting the family estate for years. The proceeds of the estate of Ferdinand and Rita Labossiere were left to the grandchildren, including Joel.

Denis, along with two others, is awaiting trial in connection with the 2005 deaths of Rita, Ferdinand and Remi, court has been told.

The Crown attorney in Clarke's trial, Gerry Bowering, has said he will be calling witness Steven Solomon who is expected to testify that Clarke went into the home of Joel and Magdalena with a sawed-off shotgun and that he heard screams followed by two gunshots. Solomon is expected to describe how the two men would later dispose of evidence in various locations.

Magdalena was visibly pregnant when she was killed by a slug fired at close range from a shotgun, a pathologist testified. Joel Labossiere also died within minutes of being shot at close range, the pathologist said.

The trial continues.