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

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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:

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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

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[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

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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

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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


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


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[

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

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ont h

er abou

t their c

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dy a

nd

chi

ld

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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

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P

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of

8

Documents

Agreed statement of facts in Dustin Hales case