Law360 Canada ( May 24, 2018, 8:26 AM EDT) -- Appeal by the Crown from the acquittal of the accused, Downey, of offences related to a home invasion shooting. Four masked individuals entered a home and announced their intention to rob the occupants of money and drugs. One of the individuals wielded a firearm. Within three to six minutes, the three occupants were shot, suffering non-fatal wounds. The Crown alleged that the accused was the shooter. The accused was tried on a 28-count indictment that included attempted murder, robbery, and various firearms offences. The sole issue at trial was identity of the shooter. A gunshot residue particle was taken from the accused's hand 3.5 hours after the shooting. One of the victims testified that she immediately recognized all four of the perpetrators. She testified that she recognized the accused as one of the masked perpetrators upon sight, and once he spoke. She testified that she was 100 per cent certain of her identification based upon prior dealings with the accused in her neighbourhood and at school. The trial judge found that the victim's identification testimony was not sufficiently accurate or reliable to sustain a conviction. Despite her honestly held belief that the accused was the shooter, the victim's identification was based on a brief observation of a masked individual. She was unable to explain what was physically distinctive about the shooter that linked him to the accused. She had not seen the accused in the previous five months, and never had more than brief exchanges with him. The victim's voice identification evidence carried a risk of confirmatory bias after the accused's arrest. The trial judge concluded that the remaining Crown evidence was not sufficiently reliable to sustain a conviction. The Crown appealed....