By Sheldon Spackman

October 15

Sentencing date set for Rocky Mountain House man charged in fatal domestic shooting

Oct 5, 2021 | 3:57 PM

Warning: This story contains graphic and disturbing details

Sentencing submissions were made in Red Deer Court of Queen’s Bench Tuesday for a Rocky Mountain House man charged in a fatal domestic shooting two years ago.

Marshall Lawrence Stone, now 47, is charged with second-degree murder in the July26, 2019 death of 28-year-old Ashley Smith-Ames. He also faces one count of unlawfully discharging a firearm with the intent to wound, maim, or disfigure during an assault on the victim’s sister that evening, his former common-law partner, Alexis Ames, then 29.

Court heard that all three lived together in a Rocky Mountain House townhouse in 2019, with three children ranging in age from 4-10-years-old at the time. The oldest child being Stone’s from a previous relationship, the middle child being the child the couple had together, while the youngest was Ashley’s.

According to an Agreed Statement of Facts, Stone consumed between six and eight beers throughout the afternoon and evening after stopping at a friend’s house after work that day.

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He arrived home around 7 p.m. and got into an argument with Alexis. Ashley was not home at the time as she was picking up dinner for her son.

All three children were in the living room next to the kitchen watching T.V. when Stone went to his downstairs bedroom to retrieve a rifle and ammunition, which he brought up to the kitchen where both sisters now were.

The court document says Stone then “pointed the rifle at Alexis, and Alexis deflected the rifle up toward the ceiling.”

Alexis then moved away from Stone toward the refrigerator as he fired a shot from the rifle, but Alexis was not hit.

Ashley and Alexis started screaming at Stone as he reloaded the rifle and pointed it at Alexis. It was at that point when Ashley stepped between them.

According to the statement, Stone fired the rifle at Ashley and struck her with a .22 calibre round to her face through her left eye. Ashley fell to her knees crying.

As the children ran out the back door of the home screaming for help, Alexis picked up a chair and hit Stone with it. She suffered a cut to the right side of her head during a brief struggle with Stone before running out the front door.

With Ashley still clinging to life, Stone fired the rifle one more time at Ashley, a shot that proved fatal.

According to the court document, Stone had left the home before police arrived but after speaking to a friend, turned himself in to the Rocky Mountain House RCMP detachment shortly before 8 p.m.

An autopsy later determined the young mother of one may have been able to survive the first gunshot wound, but the second one to the back of her head was immediately fatal.

Stone told officers he had little memory of the shooting, the Agreed Statement of Facts says.

Crown prosecutor Greg Gordon is seeking a sentence of life in prison for Stone’s second-degree murder charge, with no parole eligibility for 15 years.

For Stone’s second charge of unlawfully discharging a firearm with the intent to wound, maim, or disfigure, the Crown is seeking a four-year custodial sentence to be served concurrently with his life sentence, along with a weapons and firearms prohibition for life, and DNA order.

Defence lawyer Walter Raponi, meanwhile, is seeking parole eligibility for Stone after 12 years, two years above the 10-year minimum.

Justice Monica Bast is scheduled to announce her decision Oct. 15.

Related: Rocky Mountain House man admits to fatally shooting former common-law partner’s sister