Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
-
Upload
the-chronicle-herald -
Category
Documents
-
view
216 -
download
0
Transcript of Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
1/8
C
A
N A
D
A C.R.
No. 417950
PRO V1NCE OF NOVA SCOTIA
IN
THE
SUPREME COURT OF NOVA SCOTIA
In the matter of :
HER MAJESTY THE
QUEEN
nd
DUSTIN HALES
AGREED STATEMENT
OF FACTS
Pursuant
to section 655
of
the
Criminal
Code
of
Canada the Crown alleges and the accused Mr
Dustin rianHales admits fo r th e purposes of dispensing
with proof thereof the
following
facts:
The
Discovery
of Ms.
Christina
Climes body
[1] In the
late
morning
of
November
19
2011
Mr
Jeff Frizzell w as o ut for
a walk
on
a
trail
in
Shubenacadie Park in Dartmouth known
as
Viviens
Way
On
his w alk he discovered the
lifeless body of
an
adult female lying on her
back
in the center of the trail
wearing
a
t shirt
blue
jeans and sneakers The deceased wa s later identified
as Ms
Christina Cline
a 27
year old local
resident and
mother of three young children
aged
7 8
and
9 at
the time of
her death Mr
Frizzell immediately contacted
the police
[2]
Upon their
arrival the
police cordoned
off
the
area an d
commenced
a
homicide
investigation.
An initial
examination
of
the body demonstrated that the
deceased suffered
Page
of 8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
2/8
numerous
stab wounds
to her
torso and neck A
further
search of the
crime scene led
the
police
to discover
numerous
items including
a
small
piece
of a
jacket with
blood
stains
on it a cigarette
butt and
several
sets of footprints near the
body
The
Autopsy
of Ms.
Christina Cline
[3]
n
autopsy
was
performed
on the
body
of
Ms Cline This examination revealed
that
Ms
Cline
suffered
a total
of
18 stab
or
incision
wounds in
the
torso
and neck
On e of the
stab
wounds severed
the
carotid
artery
while
another
stab
wound
perforated the rib
cage
Additionally
it w as discovered
that
Ms Cline
suffered
a blunt
force
wound to
her
head
Ms
Cline also had
minor
bruises
and
cuts on her hands
an d
arms suggesting
that
she
had
attempted
to
defend
herself
from
her
attacker
The medical
examiner
determined
that the
cause of Ms
Clines death
was
due
to
blood
loss
with no single
wound
being an exclusive
cause
to
the
death
Ms.
Clime
is Reported
Missing
[4]
On
November
19
2011 the
police received
a
call from Ms Jana
Peterson reporting
Ms
Cline
as
a missing
person.
[5]
Ms
Peterson advised the
police
that
she
had
attended
Ms Clines
home
at
148
Roleika
Drive Dartmouth
Nova
Scotia
at
5 :0 0 p m on
November 18 2011
to
look after
Clines
three
young children
Ms Peterson
wa s expecting
Ms Cline home
that
night
by
no later than
midnight. When
Ms
Cline failed
to return home
Ms Peterson
contacted the
police
the
following
morning
The
Activities of
Ms.
Christina CLINE
on
November
18 2011
[6]
Through
their investigation the
police were
able
to
determine
the
following about the
whereabouts
of
Ms Cline on the
evening of
November
18 2011:
Page2of8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
3/8
At approximately 5 :3 0 p m
Ms
Cline drove her van
to
a local convenience store Video
surveillance from that s tore showed
Ms
Cline wearing
a
jacket
consistent
with
the small
piece
ofjacket found
near her body on Viviens Way
At approximately 6:0 4 p m Ms
Cline
attended
a
Dollar
Store on
Tacoma
Drive
in
Dartmouth Nova
Scotia where she purchased a small f lashl ight
At
approximately
6 :10 p m
Ms
Cline visited
a
friends
residence to pick up some
money that was owed
to
her
By approximately 6:20 p m
Ms Cline parked
her
van in a parking lot outside 15
Kennedy Drive
in
Dartmouth Nova Scotia
Her
vehicle
wa s
found
in this
location on
November
19
2011
by
the
police Inside
her vehicle
wa s
her bank
card
as
well
as
the
packaging for
the small flashlight
she
had
just
purchased
at
the
Dollar
Store
[7]
Ms
Cline provided
her
friends
with various
false accounts
of
where
she
wa s
going
the
night of November
18
2011
To
so me she indicated th at s he
had a parenting class
at
family
Court
while to
other s she
indicated that she
wa s going
on a
date
with
someone
she
had met
on
a
dating
website. Throughout the course of the police
investigation
it became
clear
that
on the
evening of November 18 2011
Ms
Cline wa s
planning on seeing Ms
Victoria Weir
The Relationship between
Ms.
Christina
Cline Ms. Victoria Weir and Mr. Dustin
Hales
[8]
At the time
of
her
death
Ms
Clines long term relationship with
Mr
Dustin
Hales w as in
the final
stages
of dissolution.
Mr H ales and Ms Cline began their relationship in Ontario
In
2001
Mr
Hales joined the Canadian
Navy
resulting in the
couple
moving to
Halifax
Nova
Scotia in
2002
Th e
couple
had three children together
[9]
In September of 2010
Mr
Hales
and Ms
Cline decided
to commence
a polygamous
relationship
and sought an
interested
female
through a
dating website
Mr
Hales
an d M s Cline
made contact
with
Ms Weir
a
resident of Sydney
Nova
Scotia w ho had
a
young
child from
a
previous
relationship.
Page 3 of
8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
4/8
[101
In December 2010
Ms. Weir and
her
child
moved in
with Ms .
Cline
Mr . Hales
and their
children
in their residence
on Roleika
Drive.
The
three way
relationship between the
adults soon
dissolved
which resulted in M r.
Hales moving
into
the
basement
by
himself
while
Ms.
Clme and
Ms .
Weir entered
into a monogamous
relationship in
the
upstairs portion of
the
house with the
four
children.
[11]
In August
1
2011 the relationship
between
Ms. Weir
and Ms.
Cline dissolved.
The
following
day Ms.
Weir
and
Mr . Hales
began engaging
in
an intimate
monogamous relationship.
This relationship
prompted Ms . Cline
to confront
and allegedly
assault
Ms.
Weir As
a
result
Mr .
Hales
and Ms . Weir
along
with Ms. Weirs
young
child
moved
into
their
own apartment at
81 Lakecrest
Drive
Dartmouth
Nova Scotia.
Ms.
Cline
continued
to live
in the
Roleika
Drive
residence and
maintain
primary
care
of
her
and
Hales
three
children.
[121
In
September 2011
Mr.
Hales
was
ordered
by
the
Supreme
Court
Family
Division
to
make child
support
payments to Ms.
Cline
in
the
amount
of
1 251
per
month
By
November
2011
Mr. Hales was
in
arrears
which
caused Ms. Cline
to
become
upset
Ms. Cline
communicated her upset
about this issue
through
Ms.
Weir
to Mr .
Hales.
[13j
By
all accounts
Mr .
Hales
and Ms. Clines
relationship
was often rocky
and abusive .
Mental
health records of
Mr .
Hales
demonstrate that he previously
had
violent fantasies
some of
which including harming his
wife.
Records
from
the
Department of
Community
Services
demonstrate that Mr .
Hales
was
opposed to
Ms. Cline
re locating with
their
children
to Ontario
something she was
increasingly
considering. Friends
and family
of
Ms . Cline and Mr.
Hales
recounted various
violent disagreements
between
the
couple.
Finally
a
friend of
Ms .
Cline
noted
how
Ms.
Cline
had
previously
stated if anything
ever happens
to
me
Dustin
did it.
The Interviews of Mr.
Hales
and
Ms.
Weir
following
the
Discovery
of
Ms. Clines
body
[14]
On
November
19
2011
the
day
Ms. Clines
body was discovered
Ms.
Weir
and Mr.
Hales were interviewed
by the police.
Both
individuals reported
similar stories of
their
Page 4
of
8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
5/8
whereabouts
the
previous
night
They
claimed
that
they
were
physically intimate
at
their
residence an d then took
Ms
Weirs
child
to the IWK
childrens
hospital
to
treat
a
rash
[15]
On
November 20
2011
Ms Weir and
Mr
Hales
were
re-interviewed
by the
police. Th e
individuals
independently gave
ne w
stories
reporting
that
they
had attended
Rainbow Haven
Beach
on the
evening
of Ms
Clines disappearance
where they were
physically intimate in their
van After
reportedly returning
home
the couple
stated they were driving
ou t to Cole Harbour
Nova
Scotia
to
attend a restaurant
when
they received
a
phone
cal l f rom
their
babysitter
Ms
Michelle
Babbin
They said
Ms
Babbin
advised
them
that Ms
Weirs
child had a
rash
that
needed medical
attention Both Ms
Weir
an d M r
Hales
claimed
they picked
up Ms Weirs
daughter and
attended
the 1W K
with
her
Evidence
which Pointed towards
the Involvement
of Ms. Weir
and
Mr.
Hales
in the death
of Ms.
Clime
[16]
Despite
their assertions that they were
not involved
in th e
death of Ms Cline much of the
evidence gathered
by
the
police
suggested
that
Ms
Weir
and Mr Hales were
including
the
following:
The babysitter for Ms Weirs child
Ms Babbin
had been
told by
Mr
Hales an d
Ms
Weir
that they
would
be
attending
a Christmas
work
party
for
Mr
Hales
employment
on
the night of
November 18 2011 No
such
party occurred
Additionally Ms Babbin
advised
the
police
that
it
took
Ms
Weir
a
very
long time
almost
an hour
to
pick
her
child
up
after
being advised that her child
w as in need of medical
attention
Th e
telephone records of
Ms
Weir
Mr
Hales
and Ms Cline
were
obtained
These
records
not only confirmed
that Mr
Hales
had
a
cellular
telephone on
November
18
2011
something
which
he
and Ms Weir
denied
to the police
but
also showed that he
and
Ms
Weir were
utilizing
cell
phone
towers
in the vicinity
of
Shubenacadie Park on
the evening of
November
18
2011 Additionally
through
text messages these records
demonstrated that
Ms
Weir
and Mr Hales were
growing increasingly
angry
with
Ms
Cline
in the weeks leading
up to
her
death
Finally
the telephone records demonstrated
Page5of8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
6/8
that Ms
Cline
wa s in contact
with
Ms Weir at various times
during the early
evening
of
November
18
2011
A search warrant
wa s
executed
at the
residence
of Mr
Hales
an d
Ms
Weir In
the
process
of that
search
the small
flashlight
purchased
by
Ms
Cline
on
the
night
of
November
18 2011
was
discovered
in a filing
cabinet
A pink
purse an d
a pair
of
ladies
Nike
sneakers
were found
washed
up on
the
shore
of
Lake MicMac
a
few days
after the
body
of
Ms
Cline wa s
discovered.
This
pink
purse
wa s the purse
worn
by
Ms Cline
on
the night sh e w as
killed
The ladies Nike
sneakers
belonged
to
Ms
Weir
DNA evidence
further
suggested
that
Mr Hales
and Ms
Weir were
present
at the
crime
scene Th e cigarette
butt
found
near the body
of
Ms
Cline
contained the
DNA of both
Ms Weir
and
Ms
Cline Th e
small
piece of
jacket found
by the
body of
Ms Cline
contained the
DNA
of
Mr Hales
Several
of
the
footprints
found near the
body
of
Ms
Cline were
consistent
with
footwear
worn
by
Ms
Weir
The
Initial Arrest
of Mr.
Hales
and Ms.
Weir
December
2011
[17] On December
13
2011 Mr
H ales and M s Weir
were
arrested
for the
murder
of
Ms
Cline
Both were
interrogated
without
an y
inculpatory
information
being
revealed
They
were
released
the next morning
Shortly
after
release
Mr
Hales
and Ms Weir
were
legally married
on December
16
2011
The
Mr.
Big
Operation
[18]
After
the
initial
arrest
and release of
Mr
Hales
an d Ms
Weir
investigators
began an
undercover
operation
utilizing
an
investigative
technique
known
as a
Mr
Big
operation for
the
purpose
of
eliciting
further
evidence from
Ms Weir
and Mr
Hales
The operation
resulted
in
Ms
Weir giving
several
incriminating statements including
a
re enactment
to
undercover
officers
implicating
both
herself an d Mr
Hales
in
the
death of
Ms Cline
Page
6
of
8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
7/8
[19]
Ms
Weir provided varying
and at times inconsistent
accounts
of
what
happened to M s
Cline
on November
18 2011 In
her last statement
to
the
undercover
officers she
advised of the
following:
Mr
Hales
was
stressed
about
money an d was fighting
with
Ms
Cline
about
the custody
of
the children
Mr
Hales
told Ms Weir it
was
either
her
or
Cline
and
hed
give
her
a
few
days to think about it;
Mr
Hales
told her to ask
Ms Cline o ut o n a date
and to
tell Ms
Cline
to
make something
up about where
she
wa s going Ms
Weir advised
the
undercover
officers
that
she then
made plans
with Ms
Cline
to
go
for
a
walk
together
in Shubenacadie Park;
Before picking up
Ms
Cline Ms
Weir dropped
Mr
Hales off at
Shubenacadie
Park
and
discussed which path she should lead Ms
Cline down;
Upon
arrival
at the
park
with Ms Cline
Ms
Weir
texted Mr
Hales as
a
signal that
the
two females had arrived
Th e
content
of the texts w as s ex ua l
in nature
and was
also
intended
to
support
a future alibi;
Mr
Hales
jumped
out from the woods
when the
ladies
were
on
Viviens
Way
and
killed Ms dine;
After Ms
Cline
wa s
killed
Mr Hales and Ms
Weir returned
to their van where they
changed
before leaving;
and
After Ms Weir wa s
dropped off
at
home
Mr
Hales left again to ge t
rid of
evidence
they
took
from
the
scene
[20] No
incriminating statements were obtained
from
Mr Hales
during
the
course
of the
undercover operation
The Re arrest of Mr.
Hales and
Ms
Weir
November
24 2012
[21] On November 24
2012
Mr
Hales and Ms Weir were
arrested
for
a
second
time
During the
interrogation
of Mr
Hales h e
wa s
confronted
with
portions of
the statements
made
by
Ms Weir to
the
undercover officers
during the Mr Big operation
Page 7 of
8
-
8/10/2019 Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case
8/8
[
W
hen
con
front
ed
by
the
se
st
atem
ents
Mr
Ha
les
c
onfi
rme
d his in
volv
eme
nt in the
ki
lling
of
M
s
Cl
ine
He
ackn
owl
edge
d
t
hat
M
s W
eir dro
pped him o
ff at
Shu
bena
cad
ie
P
ark on th
e
early
ev
en in
g
of
Nov
emb
er
18 2
011 and
he
th
en
w
alk
ed
to V
ivien
s W
ay
t
o
wai
t for
th
e
a
rriva
l
of
Ms
W
eir
an
d
Ms
Cli
ne
He
a
ckno
wled
ged
th
at
th
e
tex
t mes
sage
s
we
re inten
ded
t
o
p
rovi
de
hi
m with n
otice t
hat th
e two f
em al
es
h
ad en
tered the par
k
H
e
ack
now
ledg
ed tha
t
he
sta
bbed and
k
illed Ms
Clin
e alt
houg
h
he m
ain
taine
d
t
hat he
had no t pl
anne
d o
n kill
ing M
s Clin
e
th
at nig
ht
H
e
cla im
ed
th
at
it
wa
s
his
inte
ntio
n
to c
onfr
ont h
er abou
t their c
us to
dy a
nd
chi
ld
supp
ort issu
es
an
d
t
ha t
he kil
led
her
aft
er
sh
e
b
ecam
e ang
ry with hi
m
[
23] F
ollow
ing
M
r H
ales
s inte
rview
on No
vem
ber
2
4
201
2
th
e pol
ice sea
rche
d a regi
on of
L
ake
anoo
k
w
here th
ey
belie
ved
the
y wou
ld
fin
d
item
s
that w
ere use
d
i
n
t
he
ki
lling
o
f
Ms
C
line A
s
a
res
ult o
f the
ir
se
arch
the
y rec
over
ed a
g
arba
ge
bag wei
ghed dow
n
by
roc
ks
w
hich
co
ntain
ed a sing
lebl
aded kn if
e
an
a
sp
and
sev
eral
item
s
o
f so
iled
cl
othin
g
LL
O
F
W
HIC
H IS DM
ITT
ED
this
day
of
O
ctob
er
2
014
at
the
Ha
lifa
x
R
egio
na l
Mun
icip
ality
No
va
Sco
tia
M
r
D
ustin
rian
H
ale
s
Mr
[ark
Hee
r
m
a
oun
slr jj
r Maj
esty
the
Q
uee
n
M
r
u
i Ta
n cou
nse
l
fo
r
Mr P
eter Dos
tal
M
r
st
in
Bria
n H
ales
Co
unse
l
f
or
He r
M
aje
sty
the Q
uee
n
P
age 8
of
8