A Regina man convicted of two counts of first-degree murder for two killings in late 2019 will be getting a new trial.
Dillon Ricky Whitehawk was tried and convicted on two counts of first-degree murder in the fatal drive-by shootings of Jordan Gaiton Denton and Keenan Scott Toto in North Central Regina.
The shootings occurred about three weeks apart.
According to court documents, Whitehawk argued three main points to Saskatchewan’s Court of Appeal for a new trial.
The first being that the judge in the initial trial did not permit him to challenge perspective jurors for cause on the bias against members of street gangs.
At the time of the drive-by shootings it was alleged that Whitehawk was a member of the Regina street gang known as the “Indian Mafia.”
Witnesses who testified at the trial identified Whitehawk as the shooter in both incidents and said he shot Denton and Toto because he believed they were members of a rival street gang.
According to the Crown, Whitehawk felt that killing them would raise his status within the “Indian Mafia.”
Secondly, Whitehawk said the judge permitted a Crown witness to give expert opinions on how street gangs operate.
Whitehawk’s third argument for a new trial was that the judge failed to conduct the necessary inquiry when a concern regarding a juror’s impartiality was potentially compromised due to their potential involvement with an Indigenous street gang. Something the Crown intended to point out in its argument.
“For the reasons [above], I would allow Mr. Whitehawk’s appeal, set aside the convictions, and order a new trial,” Justice Jeffery D. Kalmakoff said in the decision.
On March 27, the Supreme Court of Canada declined an appeal on the decision filed by the Crown - allowing the proceedings to go ahead.
Whitehawk was sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.
He will remain in custody for the duration of the proceedings - as he was also convicted of first-degree murder for the 2020 gang-related death of Keesha Bitternose in Regina.
For that offence, he was also sentenced to life in prison with no chance of parole for 25 years.
