EDMONTON -- Lawyers are expected to finish their final arguments late Wednesday afternoon in the trial of an Ontario man accused of killing a woman found dead in an Edmonton hotel room.
Bradley Barton is accused of manslaughter in the death of Cindy Gladue, a 36-year-old Metis and Cree woman, at the Yellowhead Inn in June 2011.
Medical experts have testified that Gladue suffered from a severe and painful wound to her vagina and bled to death.
Barton has testified he paid Gladue for sex on two consecutive nights and that he discovered her bloody body in the bathtub after their second night together.
His defence lawyer Dino Bottos addressed the jury Wednesday and challenged the prosecution's assertions that Gladue was incapacitated by alcohol and was purposefully harmed by Barton during sex.
"The Crown doesn't have a lot of facts, it has theories," said Bottos. "Mr. Barton doesn't have to prove anything."
Bottos noted the pair engaged in a similar act the night before without any adverse consequences. He told jurors they have to decide if Barton knowingly injured her.
"You don't know the amount of force Mr. Barton used. You don't know the amount of intentionality," he told the jury.
"You certainly don't have any evidence beyond a reasonable doubt that he intended to harm her."
Prosecutors are scheduled to present their closing arguments later Wednesday afternoon. They've argued that Barton forced violent sex on an intoxicated Gladue and let her bleed to death in the tub.
Crown prosecutor Lawrence Van Dyke noted for the jury how Barton had lied to police about his interactions with Gladue and when he called 911 the morning he reported finding her body.
"Instead of calling for medical assistance, he simply let her bleed to death," he said.
Van Dyke called Barton's credibility into question, calling his version of events "the concoctions of a proven liar."
"It is inconsistent with the expert evidence and physical evidence from the scene," said Van Dyke of Barton's story.
"It defies logic and common sense in light of all the circumstances."
This is the second trial for Barton in relation to Gladue's death after the Supreme Court of Canada ordered in 2019 that he be retried.
His first trial in 2015 sparked rallies and calls for justice for Indigenous women.
With files from the Canadian Press
