WARNING: This story contains details of violence and a photo of a crime scene.
The Crown has closed its case at the murder trial of Cody Chubey, who admits he killed his ex-partner Danielle Dobersheck but does not admit that he intended to kill her.
Chubey, 38, is charged with first-degree murder. His trial began Monday in Melfort Court of King’s Bench.
On Wednesday, after the Crown called its final witness, defence lawyer Peter Abrametz sought an adjournment to get more time to prepare his case.
Justice Sean Sinclair granted the request, and scheduled a conference call for July 10 when trial scheduling will be discussed. The likely continuation date will be in the fall.
Abrametz said he intends to call expert evidence relating to Chubey’s mental state.
Warning: This story contains disturbing details. The Crown has closed its case at the murder trial of Cody Chubey, who admits he killed his ex-partner Danielle Dobersheck but does not admit that he intended to kill her. As Lisa Risom explains, the defence has brought Chubey’s mental health into question.
“Mr. Chubey is admitting the physical elements of the offence. He is admitting what the witnesses are testifying to, so none of that is contested. He is very remorseful,” Abrametz said in an interview.
“He is not admitting that he intended to cause death, and that is really the crux of the case, from the defence point of view.”
For the offence of first-degree murder, Abrametz said the Crown needs to prove beyond a reasonable doubt that a person intended to cause death and that they had an operating mind.
“That is usually the baseline, that’s the assumption, that people intend the natural consequences of their act,” he said. “But there are exceptions to that and, ordinarily, what’s required is medical evidence.”
Dobersheck’s family and friends were not happy with the adjournment request.
“I think it’s just a ploy to try to soften the sentence,” Dobersheck’s father Darris said outside court. “Everyone does have some mental health [issues], but at the end of the day, you’re responsible for your actions.”
Relationship tumultuous
One of the last witnesses on Wednesday was Xaveria Cecilia Bird, a former step-mom to Dobersheck.
She testified that Dobersheck stayed with her in Prince Albert for four days, March 5 to 8, 2024, because she needed some “space and time” to think. Bird described Dobersheck and Chubey’s relationship as like a “back and forth rollercoaster.”
Bird said Dobersheck told her that Chubey had broken up with her, and that she needed a change. Bird said she arranged a job interview for Dobersheck in another community, and they talked about how Dobersheck would tell Chubey that she was going to take the kids and leave.
But then, Dobersheck told her that Chubey had called her, and she decided to go back to Melfort, Bird said.
She told Dobersheck to “be very careful,” she testified.
Daughter’s statement to police
Court also heard on Wednesday a statement Dobersheck’s oldest daughter gave to police on the day after her mother was killed.
Normally, a witness would have to attend court to testify and acknowledge the truth of a police statement before it is accepted as evidence. But in this case, the Crown and defence agreed to admit the statement without the girl having to be present.
Near the beginning of the statement, the officer asked the 13-year-old how things were at home. She said they were pretty good when it was just her, her mom and the other two children, but when her dad would be there, “he was trying to pick fights for no reason.”
She said her dad had broken up with her mom “because he had stuff to work through.”
On March 9, 2024, her mom and dad went on a “date day,” she told police. The teen said they were supposed to stay overnight at a hotel in Saskatoon but for some reason they came back to Melfort, where they burst into the house shortly after 1 a.m. on March 10, surprising the teen and her friend who was staying over.
She said she could tell they were both drunk. She said Chubey was “stomping around” and “screaming” at her, and that her mom told him to chill, then they left.
“That was the last time I saw my mom or my dad,” she said.
She showed the police officer a text she sent her mom at 1:21 a.m., saying she was mad at her mom for bursting in. The girl said that was right after her parents left.
Her mom messaged back at 2:51 a.m., saying she was sorry.
The teen didn’t see it until 4:30 a.m., when she responded.
Her mom never messaged back.
Motel owner testifies
Other witnesses at the trial have testified that Chubey and Dobersheck went to the Carra Valla Inn in the early hours of March 10.
A couple staying in the room next door said they could hear a man and a woman arguing, and then they heard the man start beating up the woman.
They called police, which was logged at 4:37 a.m. There are no RCMP officers on duty at that hour in Melfort, so two on-call officers were called as they were sleeping. They got out of their beds, met at the detachment and took a police cruiser to the motel.
The two officers arrived at the motel at 5:05 a.m. Chubey let them into the room, where they found Dobersheck dead in the bathtub and the motel room covered in blood.
She died of blunt force trauma to the head. Beside her in the bathroom, police found a snow shovel with her blood on it.
On Wednesday, the motel owner was called as a witness. Through a Korean interpreter, Kyu Won (Andrew) Oh said he kept two or three snow shovels leaned up outside to clean snow from the walkway outside the doors of the motel.
He was shown a photo of the snow shovel found in the room and said it was his.
“Do you ever store shovels in motel rooms?” Crown prosecutor Jennifer Souter asked Oh.
“No,” he replied.
If you’re in immediate danger or fear for your safety or that of others around you, please call 911. If you’re affected by family or intimate partner violence, you can look for help through crisis lines and local support services.
