Image Credit: CFJC Today

By Ashley Legassic

GORDON CAMILLE

Kamloops man who killed roommate has appeal dismissed

Jan 31, 2020 | 3:27 PM

KAMLOOPS — Three years after Dennis Adolph died of a stabbing, the man responsible has had his appeal dismissed.

According to a B.C. Court of Appeal decision from Jan. 27, Gordon Camille appealed his manslaughter conviction, stating the judge erred in concluding that the only reasonable inference was that Camille killed 49-year-old Dennis Adolph.

On Jan. 26, 2016, Adolph died from blood loss as a result of a single stab wound to his abdomen. He had been living at the Four Seasons Motel in Valleyview for two months, sharing a room with Camille.

Camille and Adolph returned to their room at 8:15 p.m. the night prior. During that evening, witnesses heard loud voices and music coming from the room, but nothing to indicate a dispute.

Surveillance cameras around the property showed the comings and goings of Adolph and Camille between Jan. 25 and Jan. 26.

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From 8:15 p.m. Jan. 25 to 6:15 a.m. the next day, only Adolph and Camille could have been in the room — no one else, according to the decision.

At 6:15 a.m., Adolph went to the hotel manager’s office then returned to his room. At 6:52 a.m., Camille left the room and went to the manager’s office. He knocked with no response, and went back to his room.

At 11:15 a.m. Camille left the room and reported Adolph’s death to the manager.

The issue in the appeal was whether Camille stabbed Adolph or whether Adolph stabbed himself.

“Mr. Camille raises several related grounds of appeal dealing with the inferences the trial judge drew from the evidence. He submits that the trial judge erred by wrongly filling in gaps in the evidence, that she ignored other reasonable inferences available on the evidence, and that the verdict was unreasonable or unsupported by the evidence,” the decision states.

The appeal judge ruled that the trial judge’s reasons, when read as a whole, do not contain any errors, and the verdict was “reasonable and supported by the evidence.”

Read the full decision here.