By EverythingGP (Curtis Galbraith)

Suspect charged with killing Red Deer woman at work camp pleads not guilty

Oct 30, 2018 | 5:42 AM

GRANDE PRAIRIE- The man charged following a double murder in northwest Alberta almost three years ago has pleaded not guilty to all six charges by reason of mental disorder.

A judge-alone trial is underway at the Grande Prairie Provincial Courthouse where Daniel Goodridge is facing charges of first and second degree murder, interfering with human remains and three counts of assault with a weapon.

Camp manager David Derksen, 37, from LaCrete, and 50-year-old Hally Dubois from Red Deer, were killed at a work camp near Fox Creek in June 2015. 

Three others were injured, including an RCMP officer.

At the time, Goodridge was an occupant of the camp and knew the victims.He was shot and wounded by RCMP during the 2015 incident.

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At the start of the trial, the defence said Goodridge had been held at the RCMP detachment since Friday and hadn’t had a chance to change his clothes or brush his teeth. They also said a charter application may be next if the conditions do not improve.

The first day also saw evidence presented that included an agreed statement of facts and two autopsy reports.

There was also a photo booklet with pictures from the crime scene. The defence claimed the photos had nothing to do with Goodridge’s mental state at the time of the murders. Justice K.G. Nielsen disagreed, saying they were relevant and may say something about Goodridge’s mental state.

Goodridge’s mom and a former girlfriend were among those called to testify by the Crown on Monday.

His mom says her son seemed to be doing well in April of 2015 before she went on a nearly two-month trip to England but was not by the time she returned in June. She says she did not get a chance to talk to him as she was busy with other family things, at one point tearing up and saying she was sorry for not doing so. She also told the court her son had attempted suicide four times in the years before the stabbings.

Goodridge’s former girlfriend testified that when they first got together in late 2014, he was sweet, kind, and caring, but by April of 2015, his behavior changed.

The trial is expected to last two weeks.

(With file from The Canadian Press)