VANCOUVER — A British Columbia woman in her 60s has been sentenced to life in prison without chance of parole for 11 years for the second-degree murder of her close friend and heroin dealer.
Trudy Hunter was found guilty of killing Christina Docherty by stabbing her more than 20 times with a steak knife from the victim's own kitchen in November 2013.
Judge Heather Holmes says in an online ruling that the case relied on extensive blood stain evidence because there was no witness to the murder.
The judgment says Hunter didn't take any steps to report the incident or call for help, and Docherty's daughter discovered her dead in her foyer several days later.
During the trial, Hunter testified she was using heroin and chatting with her friend when the other woman was offended by something she said and came at her with a knife.
The ruling says there was a struggle to the death, with both women fighting for the knife as they moved through the apartment until Hunter gained control and stabbed Docherty in the heart.
