By Sarah Rae

Community to support deceased’s family at accused murderer’s court appearance

Aug 16, 2016 | 7:00 PM

People planning to gather outside an accused murderer’s court appearance say they’re going to be there not to protest, but to support a shooting victim.

The gathering will be outside the North Battleford Provincial Court on Thursday morning, Aug. 18, before Gerald Stanley makes his second appearance on the charge of second-degree murder in Colten Boushie’s death.

Janel Baker, who helped plan the event, stressed it’s not meant to be a protest, just a show of support for Boushie.

“This is not a protest in any way but a peace gathering to show our support and all our condolences to (Boushie) and his family,” she said. “We want justice and to show people that all lives matter regardless of race or social status.”

Hundreds of people are talking about the event on social media and there are supporters travelling from other cities and provinces to attend.

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Boushie, 22, was shot to death after he and four friends drove onto Stanley’s farm near Biggar last week. Boushie’s friends said they were looking for help after getting a flat tire.

Racist reactions to the shooting online have spurred the RCMP to warn the public about hateful comments that could be criminal.

Baker said it was sad to see the racist backlash against Boushie on social media.

“This isn’t how our society should react to a tragic situation like this,” she said. “(Boushie) didn’t deserve this. He was a hard-working young man who was well respected in the community with a great future ahead of him. We don’t want our community remembering him the way some individuals are portraying him to be.”

She said it’s been great to see all the support for Boushie and hopes it will last throughout the court process.

The gathering is at 8:30 a.m. Thursday at the North Battleford Provincial Court.

Sarah Rae is battlefordsNOW’s court and crime reporter. She can be reached at Sarah.Rae@jpbg.ca or tweet her @sarahjeanrae.