North Okanagan woman pleads guilty to manslaughter in homicide case

A North Okanagan woman has pleaded guilty to manslaughter and has been sentenced in relation to a homicide in 2020.

In August 2020, Lynda Elsie Saundry, born 1961, was formally charged with the first-degree murder of 55-year-old Barry Jones from the North Okanagan.

At the time, it was alleged Saundry used a firearm to kill Jones.

Details surrounding the case were unclear but the file number assigned by the courts was the same number used in intimate partner violence cases, and associated with domestic abuse.

READ MORE: Province spends $7M on Vernon court renos but trials still transferred elsewhere

Today, March 5, four years later, 63-year-old Saundry entered a guilty plea to the charge of manslaughter in Kelowna court.

In a joint submission with the BC Prosecution Service and defence counsel Saundry was sentenced to 10 years.

“I am proud of our officers and partners hard work on this file. We are grateful for the support we have had throughout this investigation and our hearts go out to the victim’s family and friends as we continue to support them,” Sgt. Jason Smart, NCO in Charge of Southeast District Major Crime Unit, said in a press release.

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