Delay in sentencing for woman who shot her husband dead while camping – Kamloops News

Photo: Castanet Staff

Sentencing has been delayed for a North Thompson woman who shot her husband dead while camping more than two years ago.

Ashleigh Tschritter, 33, was convicted on Dec. 2 by a B.C. Supreme Court jury. She stood trial on one count of second-degree murder, but the jury returned a guilty verdict on the lesser included charge of manslaughter.

David Simpson was shot to death on Sept. 6, 2020, at a campsite off a forest service road near Vavenby, east of Clearwater on Highway 5.

Court heard Tschritter and Simpson were arguing before the fatal shot was fired. An eyewitness testified that he saw Tschritter retrieve a shotgun and kill Simpson.

That witness, Gary Flowers, said Tschritter’s demeanour changed when Simpson mentioned another woman.

By finding Tschritter guilty of manslaughter, the jury accepted that she killed Simpson but not that she intended to.

Tschritter did not testify and called no defence evidence. Jurors heard a 911 call in which she told a dispatcher Simpson killed himself.

Lawyers are expected to return to court on Jan. 23 to set a date for Tschritter’s sentencing. The matter has been delayed as lawyers wait for a ruling from B.C. Supreme Court Justice Joel Groves on a pre-trial issue.

Manslaughter carries with it a mandatory minimum four-year prison sentence when a firearm is involved.

Tschritter remains free on bail.