Hunter Van Mackelberg, convicted of murder

Hunter Van Mackelberg, convicted of murder, was not a victim of inadequate legal representation, according to a ruling by Alberta's highest court on Wednesday, which denied his appeal against the conviction.

A three-judge panel from the Alberta Court of Appeal found that Van Mackelberg's assertion that his trial attorney, Andre Ouellette, failed to adequately defend him—including allegations that Ouellette fell asleep during the trial—was unsubstantiated. His appeal lawyer, Andrea Serink, presented several arguments seeking to overturn the February 22, 2022, ruling by Court of King's Bench Justice Glen Poelman that sentenced Van Mackelberg to second-degree murder.

However, the Appeal Court justices concluded that Van Mackelberg did not experience a miscarriage of justice. In their written decision, the judges acknowledged a moment during the trial when Ouellette appeared distracted while presenting uncontested evidence from the Crown, noting that he "briefly closed his eyes." They clarified, "The appellant contends that trial counsel fell asleep. Trial counsel vehemently denies this." The judges continued, "We are not convinced that this fleeting inattention during a non-controversial segment of the trial undermines public confidence in the justice system to the extent that a new trial is warranted." Van Mackelberg also claimed in an affidavit that he wished to testify on his own behalf but was persuaded not to do so. The judges responded, stating, "We find the appellant's new evidence—asserting he would have testified despite the numerous challenges his testimony might encounter—to be lacking in credibility. His mere claims that he intended to testify, along with the specific points he alleges he would have covered, do not demonstrate that he was effectively denied the opportunity to make a meaningful choice..
" Justice Poelman determined that Van Mackelberg shot Kalix Langenau in the early hours of February 15, 2020, following Langenau's repeated messages to the girlfriend of Van Mackelberg, who was a former partner of Langenau. The 19-year-old victim was shot once in the back of the head in a field near Balzac.