(ADAM PROSKIW / iNFOnews.ca)
March 29, 2016 - 8:00 PM
KELOWNA - Kelowna’s courthouse has undergone $4 million in renovations, largely for security ahead of a high profile murder trial of three men accused of killing Jonathan Bacon in 2011.
According to Ministry of Justice, the upgrades were done to bring the room up to contemporary standards and not as a direct result of the trial of Jujhar Khun-Khun, Jason McBride and Michael Hunter Jones, who are charged with murder and attempted murder and are due for trial Nov. 7, 2016.
"We are making investments to accommodate a broader range of criminal matters,” she says.
The Ministry declined to comment on the specifics of the project, however an X-Ray scanner and metal and glass doorway have been installed just outside Courtroom 1 where the Bacon trial is expected to be held later this year.
The gallery of Courtroom 1 has also been outfitted with new seating, carpets and paneling and is now separated from the court by a large, glass partition. The gallery are dependent on a microphone and speaker system that broadcasts from microphones in the court.
Witness boxes are now enclosed in protective glass and lawyers enter and leave through a guarded door.
To contact a reporter for this story, email Adam Proskiw at aproskiw@infonews.ca or call 250-718-0428. To contact the editor, email mjones@infonews.ca or call 250-718-2724.
News from © iNFOnews, 2016