Gun Seller's Fate in Cop Killings

0:00Closing arguments wrapped up Thursday in the trial of 21-year-old Dennis Okumo, basing over a dozen charges tied to the shooting deaths of two Edmonton police officers last year. He's accused of manslaughter for selling a rifle to a 16-year-old who gunned down Constables Travis Jordan and Brett Ryan during a domestic call response. Back in March 2023, the team had strangled his mom, who called cops from a neighbor's place. Officers got hit outside the apartment, the mom survived a shot, and the kid turned the gun on himself. Okumo sold him that 0.22 caliber semi-auto rifle plus 80 rounds earlier that year, along with weed and coke. Crown prosecutor Adam Garrett pushed hard that Okumo knew or ignored the obvious risks of arming a minor with mental health issues like schizophrenia. They say it's foreseeable harm from illegal sales, even without knowing the full story. Meanwhile, defense lawyer Jamil Sawani called it scapegoating a young indigenous guy since the real shooter has gone. Okumo pled guilty to weapons and drug trafficking,

1:05but not the manslaughter counts for the two cops in the team. No proof he saw violence or psychosis firsthand, lawyers argued, and the kid's breakdown was his alone. Turns out the rifle was used days earlier to wound a guy at a pizza spot. Just as John Little would drop a verdict later and folks were watching close. This could stretch liability for gunsellers nationwide, but defense warns that's Parliament's job, not courtroom stretches on one case. Eyes stay glued for the ruling. That's your update from Canada News Today, powered by AI.