DRUG DEALER GUILTY IN C-TRAIN MURDER

Teen Died Over $10 Deal

Natalie Pasqua cupped her head in her hands in the prisoner's box and
cried as a jury convicted her on Thursday of second-degree murder for
pushing a teen to his death between two cars of a moving C-Train.

While the verdict came as a shock to Pasqua, her lawyer and her
family, it was a relief to friends and family of Gage Prevost, who
died instantly in the struggle over a $10 drug deal at the 8th Street
S.W. platform.

It occurred last Aug. 1, seconds after a train arrived at the downtown
station about 4:40 p.m. during rush hour.

"Gage will never get the opportunity to cry. I don't feel sorry for
her at all," said Dale Prevost, the 17-year-old deceased's father,
outside court when asked what he thought of Pasqua's reaction.

"I'm glad I heard it. My son doesn't get to cry."

Court heard Pasqua, 27, and Prevost had been arguing over a
contentious crack cocaine transaction at the west end of the C-Train
platform, where drug deals are common.

Prevost first pushed Pasqua onto the tracks, then she returned and the
fight continued. Either one or both of them, according to different
witnesses, bounced off the just-arriving train before Prevost was
pushed to his death.

Pasqua faces an automatic life sentence with no chance of parole for
10 to 25 years. The eight-man, four-woman jury -- which deliberated
for 21/2 hours -- recommended the minimum 10 years.

Defence lawyer Andre Ouellette said outside court he was surprised and
disappointed with the verdict.

"I was always concerned that our greatest exposure was manslaughter.
My client, as well, believed that her worst exposure was to
manslaughter," said Ouellette.

"She's torn apart. She was torn apart from the beginning because of
what happened and she was torn apart over her role in what were really
tragic circumstances. But she certainly didn't expect that."

What probably helped the jury decide Pasqua's intent was a comment she
allegedly made either before or after he was tossed off the platform.

Three witnesses, all friends of the victim, told court that Pasqua
said: "Do you want to get hit by a train?" moments before the fatal
push.

Pasqua, an admitted cocaine addict who has a criminal record of more
than 20 convictions, denied making the statement.

Ouellette said he was encouraged by the jury's recommendation.

"If they're prepared to recommend the minimum, it suggests to me their
finding of intent for murder was at the lowest level possible," he
said.

"It suggests they had some additional difficulty with finding the
intent."

Ouellette expressed concern over Court of Queen's Bench Justice John
Rooke's complex, five-plus hours instruction to the jury on Wednesday
and suggested it might be a ground for appeal.

Dale Prevost said the verdict will help give him some closure, but
there are still some hurdles to go, including sentencing.

"It's a big step today, a big step," he said. "The prosecutors (Harold
Hagglund and Marta Juzwiak) did an amazing job and all the support I
had from friends and family has been amazing.

"We were nervous and scared (when the jury came back so quickly), but
I had a lot of supporters saying it had to be good, it had to be good,
and it turned out it was."

Karen Prevost, the victim's aunt, said it meant a lot to the family
that 12 citizens of Calgary agreed with the prosecutors' argument.

It also reinforced the family's position that Gage was not at
fault.

"All the things that were printed and reported about Gage . . . he did
nothing wrong," she insisted. "He was the victim here and he was only
17."

Court heard that he had an alcohol level of 0.261 -- more than three
times the legal driving limit -- and cocaine in his liver.

Pasqua testified earlier this week she didn't know the C-Train had
just arrived until they bounced off the side of it during the fight,
and didn't mean to kill him.

She also believed that Prevost was unaware the slow-moving train was
there either.

A gruesome video, shown repeatedly during the seven-day trial, wasn't
totally clear on what led to the fatal shove, but showed her standing
beside the train, then on the ground.

Prevost's legs could next be seen sticking out from between the train
and platform and spinning along with the slow-moving train.