Kenneth Law, the Toronto-area man accused of selling poison to individuals at risk of self-harm, will avoid a murder trial and his criminal case will come to a conclusion next month, a judge has said.
Law’s lawyers appeared before Ontario Superior Court Justice Michelle Fuerst along with Crown attorneys for a brief hearing on Monday afternoon. The judge said Law will appear in person at a Newmarket court on May 29 for “resolution proceedings.”
Law’s lawyer, Matthew Gourlay, previously told CBC News his client would plead guilty to counselling or aiding suicide, in connection with 14 deaths in Ontario. In turn, Gourlay said Crown prosecutors would withdraw the charges of first-degree murder laid against Law.
According to an email reviewed by CBC News, a representative of Ontario’s Ministry of the Attorney General told the family of an alleged victim that Law will be pleading guilty to abetting suicide. The message, dated April 17, did not lay out what would happen to the 14 counts of murder.
The email also said a sentencing hearing would be held at a later date.
The case is scheduled to return to a court in Newmarket on May 13 for judicial proceedings involving prosecutors, defence lawyers and Justice Fuerst. Such proceedings are typically held behind closed doors.
Fuerst said on Monday the trial dates can now be taken off the court’s calendar.
Law, a 60-year-old trained engineer who worked as a hotel cook, has been in custody since being arrested at his Mississauga home in May 2023.
Police previously said Law operated online storefronts which sold a legal – but potentially lethal – chemical and other suicide paraphernalia.
An indictment filed at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice says Law has been linked to 14 deaths in several cities, including Toronto, Thunder Bay and London, Ont., between 2021 and 2023.
The families of 18-year-old Jeshennia Bedoya Lopez, 19-year-old Ashtyn Prosser, and Stephen Mitchell Jr., 21, have all identified their loved ones as alleged victims. Police have said the other deceased ranged in age from 16 to 36.
According to the Criminal Code, counselling or aiding suicide carries a maximum sentence of 14 years. A murder conviction automatically means life in prison, with no chance of parole for at least 25 years.
