Overview
- Kenneth Law’s lawyer confirmed late Friday that prosecutors will withdraw 14 murder counts and that Law will plead guilty to 14 counts of counselling or aiding suicide, with a Newmarket court appearance Monday to set a plea date expected in May as both sides finalize an agreed statement of facts.
- The Ontario indictment links Law to 14 deaths in cities including Toronto, Thunder Bay and London, with victims listed as ages 16 to 36 and several families publicly naming their loved ones.
- Police allege Law ran websites that sold sodium nitrite, a meat-curing chemical that can be lethal if ingested, and say he shipped at least 1,200 packages to buyers in more than 40 countries, prompting probes in the U.S., U.K., Italy, Australia and New Zealand.
- Shifting from murder to aiding suicide reduces potential penalties, since each aiding-suicide count carries up to 14 years in prison while murder triggers life with no parole for at least 25 years, and judges often order sentences to run at the same time though some legal experts say consecutive terms are possible.
- Families of alleged victims blasted the collapse of the murder case and one U.K. father urged British charges tied to shipments reported there, while Law remains in custody after his May 2023 arrest and awaits plea and sentencing hearings.