Both Kentner sisters testifying on the opening day of the Brayden Bushby trial at the Courthouse Hotel.
Melissa on the stand and the late Barbara was featured in an interview she did with Thunder Bay Police in March of 2017.
MELISSA KENTNER TESTIMONY (CROWN)
- She indicated not actually seeing her sister struck with the trailer hitch
- A dark grey vehicle with tinted windows was seen at the corner of Cameron and McKenzie Streets
- She was telling her sister to hurry up because it was cold
- She heard one of the members of the passing vehicle say “I got one of them”.
- She wondered why the heck was one of the members sitting on the passenger side window outside the car
- Barbara told Melissa that she wanted to see how she felt later in the morning, instead of seeking immediate medical attention
- Around 7:00 a.m. on January 29th the decision was made to go to the hospital
- Surgery was conducted later in the evening and went into January 30th
- Melissa was waiting for her sister’s approval to get police involved
MELISSA KENTNER TESTIMONY (DEFENSE)
- Lawyer George Joseph brought forward a recognizance, which was entered as exhibit two
- Joseph also brought forward a previous conditional sentence order in November 2016 against Melissa, which said she had to abide by a curfew of not being outside of her residence between 10:00 p.m. and 7:00 a.m.
- She indicated that her probation officer signed off on that part of her order, and she would’ve risked any possible arrest to get Barbara help
LATE BARBARA KENTNER (MARCH 2017 INTERVIEW WITH POLICE)
- She indicates she wanted to go to the hospital right away, but her sister Melissa said it’s not that bad
- Later on the morning of January 29th Barbara again pushed to go to the hospital because of the pain she was in, but Melissa wanted to eat and shower first.
- Eventually the other sister Cheryl ended up taking Barbara to the hospital.
- Barbara indicated she was in a lot of pain, couldn’t walk and sustained liver damage
TRIAL EXHIBITS
- Trailer Hitch
- Recognizance
- Conditional Sentence Order (November 2016)
- (A) Video of the late Barbara Kentner, (B) transcript of Kentner
- Transcript of evidence from Jordan Crupi from the preliminary hearing
- Transcript of evidence from Nathan Antoniszyn from the preliminary hearing
NOTE: Both transcripts were under a publication ban, but that has now been lifted
BRAYDEN BUSHBY
The 21-year-old accused plead guilty to the count of Aggravated Assault, but not guilty of the count of manslaughter in connection to the death of Kentner.
The crown argues the alleged actions of Bushby led to Kentner’s eventual death, but acknowledge the autopsy found liver disease contributed to her passing.
The defense says this isn’t a racial targeting case of an Indigenous woman, as portrayed by the media, but rather a case of “people being stupid”.
