in si de ha lto n. co m O ak vi lle B ea ve r | T hu rs da y, F eb ru ar y 13 ,2 02 0 | 4 AtlasCare Never Closes Open 24/7 365 Days AYear Heating, Plumbing and main drain rePairs Call 289-205-3443 From The AtlasCare Team Wishing You A Happy Family Day and Flat Rates to Airport & Out of Town www.oakvi l leunitedtaxi.com 905.338.0044 • 10% Discount On Parcel Service • GPS Computerized Dispatch • Wheelchair Accessible Vehicles • Corporate Accounts Welcome • 10% Senior Discount - In Town • Largest Taxi Company in Oakville ThemeTeR RATe 20%OFF OAKVILLEUNITED TAXIDOWNLOAD OUR APP Parcel Service OAKVILLE UNITED DOWNLOAD OUR APP OAKVILLE UN DOWNLOAD OUR APP when using our APP! OAKVILLE UNITED TAXI 24 HR • 7 DAYS AWEEK Oakville's #1 ChOiCe fOryears! A lawyer for a youth ac- cused of fatally shooting Oakville teen Keegan Par- kinson says the Crown's star witness could just as easily be the one who pulled the trigger. Defence attorney Bren- dan Neil presented his clos- ing arguments in a Bur- lington court on Friday, Feb. 7 as the manslaughter trial of two youths, each ac- cused of playing a role in Parkinson's shooting, came to an end. The teens can only be identified as Youth 1 and Youth 2 because they were both 17 when the incident took place. Parkinson, 19, was killed in the basement of a Rebecca Street home on Ju- ly 13, 2018 in an apparent ac- cidental shooting. Neil noted that assistant Crown attorney Monica Mackenzie's case rests on the testimony of Chris An- derson, who testified Nov. 4, 2019 that he had wit- nessed Parkinson's shoot- ing. Anderson, a friend of Youth 1, said he was hang- ing out in the basement with Youth 1, Youth 2 and Parkinson. He said the group drank alcohol, smoked marijua- na, took Xanex and fooled around with a sawed-off shotgun, which Anderson said belonged to Youth 1. While Youth 1 was out of the room Anderson said Youth 2, Neil's client, picked up the shotgun, pointed it and fired, killing Parkinson. Neil said Anderson can- not be taken at his word as he has a long criminal his- tory and a history of lying. The lawyer said Ander- son is a "tattooed and stamped" member of the Crips street gang, some- thing he tried to hide from police when interviewed. Neil also pointed out that Anderson fled the scene after the shooting and said nothing about it until he was arrested by po- lice. He noted that during his testimony Anderson said he arranged for Youth 1 to buy the shotgun from an- other individual and ad- mitted using the gun to rob another youth of his shoes. Anderson was also ar- rested with half a pound of marijuana at his home, said Neil, who questioned why Anderson faced no charges for any of this. Neil argued Anderson was one of only two people present when Parkinson was shot and his version of events can't be trusted, par- ticularly when the possibil- ity exists that he could be the shooter. "Does he have a motive to lie?" asked Neil. "Well, yeah. He's worried he's go- ing to jail for a long time. He has every reason in the world to say it was someone else." Youth 1's lawyer Dean Paquette raised similar concerns about Anderson's credibility. The Crown has accused Youth 1 of owning the fire- arm and loading it without telling anyone. Paquette noted that while Anderson denied loading the gun, there is only his word that he didn't do this. He told Justice Stephen Brown, who will decide this case, that while he may have suspicions about who loaded the gun, suspicion is not sufficient to convict someone of manslaughter. Mackenzie argued the NEWS JUDGE TO DECIDE FATE OF TEENS CHARGED WITH MANSLAUGHTER DEFENCE LAWYER QUESTIONS CREDIBILITY OF CROWN WITNESS DAVID LEA dlea@metroland.com Keegan Parkinson Parkinson family photo See - page 5