Whitegrass seeking bail in murder case
By Delon Shurtz on April 23, 2021.
LETHBRIDGE HERALDdshurtz@lethbridgeherald.com After spending more than a month in custody, a 37-year-old woman accused of killing her former common-law spouse last year, is set make her bid for freedom next week.Melissa Dumaine Whitegrass is scheduled to have a bail hearing Monday in Lethbridge Court of Queen’s Bench. Her case will then return to provincial court the following day when her lawyer is expected to share the outcome of the bail hearing and discuss his next steps.
Whitegrass, a decorated war veteran who was injured while serving in Afghanistan in 2010, is accused of deliberately striking and killing her ex-spouse with her vehicle last June. After a lengthy investigation, she was finally arrested and charged March 2 with first-degree murder, dangerous driving causing death, and assault with a weapon.
At about 4 p.m. on June 1, 2020, Lethbridge police responded to a report of a motor vehicle collision involving a pedestrian in the west alley of the 900 block of 13 Street South.
The victim, 30-year-old Austin James Forsyth of Lethbridge, was rushed to Chinook Regional Hospital where he later died.
During a subsequent news conference police said a woman struck Forsyth with her vehicle while he and another person walked in the alley. The other person walking with Forsyth was nearly struck, as well.
Although the passenger fled the scene, the driver remained behind and claimed the collision was accidental.
Police said, however, evidence collected at the scene and during an extensive investigation in the following months, led them to believe the incident was intentional.
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