A sentencing hearing for a Winnipeg man who pleaded guilty to second degree murder in the 2016 death of 17-year-old Cooper Nemeth has been delayed.
The hearing for Nicholas Bell-Wright, which got underway Monday morning, has been adjourned until Jan. 22 because of a large number of victim impact statements submitted to the Crown.
The Crown told a packed courtroom Monday it received 96 victim impact statements and that legislation prevents lawyers from making a determination about which ones to include.
Court heard concerns the number of victim impact statements could have a disproportionate effect on the outcome of sentencing.
Justice Glenn Joyal told court he’s never seen this many impact statements in a case but expressed concern the issue wasn’t dealt with sooner, prior to the start of Monday’s hearing.
“Victim impact statements are an important conciliatory part of the process,” Joyal told court.
READ MORE: Bell-Wright pleads guilty to second-degree murder in Cooper Nemeth killing
The Crown told court it needs time to figure out how to proceed.
Bell-Wright’s lawyers told court they understand the Crown’s position and that they too would need more than one day to review all of the victim impact statements.
Cooper Nemeth’s mom, Gaylene, told reporters she’s willing to wait and believes all of the submissions should be heard.
The minimum sentence for second degree murder is life in prison with no chance of parole for 10 years.
