A construction fence sits outside the Vernon courthouse, March 22, 2023.

(BEN BULMER / iNFOnews.ca)

The B.C. government has spent $4.7 million on renovating the Vernon courthouse but is still having to transfer cases elsewhere.

To date, $4.7 million has already been spent on some major refurbishments in the courthouse and the province has budgeted $6.7 million for the work to be complete.

Regardless of the expenditure, two North Okanagan murder cases will head to trial in Kelowna.

The separate cases of Jevon Smith and Lynda Saundry have both been transferred from Vernon to Kelowna with Saundry's trial set to be underway at the end of April.

Saundry is alleged to have used a firearm to kill her partner Barry Jones near Round Lake outside of Armstrong in July 2020. She was charged a week later and has remained in custody ever since.

Smith's case will be heard in Kelowna but not until February 2024. He was charged with the second-degree murder of Dakota Samoleski in a shooting in Spallumcheen in September 2021. He's also in custody.

Superior Courts spokesperson Bruce Cohen told iNFOnews.ca the Smith case had been transferred to Kelowna at the request of defence and Crown counsel.

It appears space may have been the issue.

The spokesperson said the Justice noted that the change of venue would also help the Court in accommodating its caseload.

Smith's second-degree murder trial is scheduled to last six and a half weeks, while Saundry's will likely last for three to four weeks.

"It is difficult to accommodate a case of that length in a small courthouse while also handling the other work that the court must deal with, civil, family and criminal (matters)," Cohen said in an email.

Cohen said that courts transfer cases to other locations with more courtrooms so that cases can get heard sooner. Smaller courthouses may find their courtroom is already booked up.

While the province is spending close to $7-million on the refurbishment it's not creating any new courtrooms.

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The courthouse opened in 1914 and is one the oldest in the province. It has two provincial courtrooms and two supreme courtrooms.

Construction work got underway at the courthouse in May 2019, after an HVAC failure caused flooding. The damage from the flood unearthed mould and crumbling concrete in the floor.

A year later the roof began leaking.

Ministry of Citizens’ Services spokesperson Vivian Thomas said the refurbishment includes structural upgrades, a roof replacement, along with exterior electrical and mechanical-related updates.

A fully refurbished provincial courtroom was completed in February along with the remediation of the sheriff’s department.

Another courtroom is currently in the state of renovation and work on the roof, and electrical and mechanical upgrades are ongoing.

For the last few years, provincial court has taken place in a converted storeroom. The basement rooms were sometimes hot, crowded and less than ideal. A large pillar often blocked the judge's sightline in one room.

While the main Supreme Court is far more elegant and a throwback to the turn of the last century, part of the public gallery has been sealed off for months and loud construction work sometimes interrupts the proceedings.

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The renovations are scheduled to be finished by August.

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