The murder trial for a Halifax-area youth accused of participating in the killing of a 16-year-old student last year heard Tuesday from an eyewitness to the fatal stabbing.
The 17-year-old accused pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder following the death on April 22 of Ahmad Maher Al Marrach, who was pronounced dead in hospital after he was found badly injured near the Halifax Shopping Centre.
Melanie Adolph told the judge-only trial she had taken her two children to the mall and was putting them in her vehicle when she heard a commotion nearby. The 38-year-old woman said that as she walked toward a group of about a dozen rowdy teens in the mall’s parkade, she saw a smaller group of four teens, two of whom were scuffling on the concrete floor.
Adolph told youth court that three of the teens were beating, kicking and stomping on Al Marrach when she yelled at them to stop, which they did for just a moment. She said that as Al Marrach was rising to his feet and dusting himself off, another youth pulled out a large kitchen knife and stabbed him in the chest.
Adolph said she ran to the wounded boy as he dropped to one knee and collapsed, blood pouring from his chest.
“It was like what you would see in a horror film,” she told Judge Elizabeth Buckle.
Adolph said she and one other bystander applied pressure to the boy’s wound to stop the bleeding, and she said she called 911 after failing to get a response when she asked members of the growing crowd to call police.
“Time went slow and fast at the same time,” she said, adding that the traumatic incident was over in about five to seven minutes.
The name of the accused or any details that could be used to identify him are protected from publication under the Youth Criminal Justice Act.
In her opening statement Monday, Crown attorney Sarah Kirby said the Crown agrees that the accused did not stab Al Marrach. However, Kirby said the evidence will show that the accused planned the group assault, which he knew could lead to the death of Al Marrach.
Defence lawyer Anna Mancini said the evidence will show her client did not intend to cause death or bodily harm that would likely lead to death.
This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 7, 2025.