Penticton

The preliminary hearing in the retrial of a man accused of murdering a Penticton woman is expected to wrap up by next Friday.

Corey Wolf Swite, who is accused of sexually assaulting and murdering an 85-year-old woman at the Belair Apartments in August, 2006, sat in the prisoners box in BC Supreme Court this week as his defence counsel made their submissions in the Voir Dire, which began in early September.

Due to a publication ban, the proceedings of the Voir Dire cannot be publicized.

Crown Counsel says he expects a decision by Oct. 15. The judge will determine whether to go to trial by jury after considering the admissibility of evidence and the competency of witnesses.

Swite won an appeal of a first-degree murder conviction in February, 2011 after a BC Court of Appeal judge set aside the verdict and ordered a new trial due to a procedural error made by the trial judge. (Swite faced life in prison with no eligibility for parole for 25 years.)

Swite’s appeal challenged the impartiality of the potential jurors.

“In summary, the fundamental nature of the error made by the trial judge was such that the curative provisions were simply not available. In the alternative, if they were available, Mr. Swite suffered both presumed and actual prejudice such that the error could not be cured," wrote Justice Prowse.