Kelowna man charged in 2021 killing denied bail; trial still a year away

Photo: Contributed

Lorence Earl Williams

A Kelowna man charged in a 2021 killing will remain behind bars after he was denied bail Monday, but his trial is still a year away.

Lorence Williams, 42, was arrested in May 2021 for the second-degree murder of Thomas Chadwick, which allegedly took place on the 3400-block of Sexsmith Road. He's remained in custody ever since.

As of last November, Williams remained detained at the Forensic Psychiatric Hospital in Port Coquitlam.

On Monday, Williams applied for bail review hearing, but his release was denied.

A March 2019 Supreme Court of Canada clarified section 525 of the Criminal Code, ensuring an accused person should have an automatic review of their detention after 90 days. The SCC ruled the review must take into account any new evidence, while keeping in mind an accused's presumption of innocence.

While Williams remains in custody, his trial is still a year away.

The eight-week trial on Williams' second-degree murder charge is scheduled to begin on March 4, 2024. A number of pre-trial applications in the case are scheduled to run in April, May, June, July and August of this year.

Back in 2021, the alleged murder prompted the Kelowna RCMP to call for additional mental health resources in the community.

Last November, the court heard that Williams was undergoing an assessment to determine if he can be found not criminally responsible for the alleged murder due to mental illness, but the result of that assessment is not known.