Former fire captain accused in wife's death bypasses preliminary hearing, heads to Superior Court
A former Brampton fire captain accused of murdering his wife last year appeared alongside his lawyer inside the Collingwood, Ont., courthouse Tuesday and waived his right to a preliminary hearing, opting instead to move directly to Superior Court.
James Schwalm was arrested on February 2, 2023, and later charged with first-degree murder and indignity to a body following the death of his wife, Ashley Milnes. He has been behind bars since his arrest.
- Download the CTV News app to get local alerts on your device
- Get the latest local updates sent to your email inbox
Schwalm was arrested after his wife's body was discovered on January 26, 2023, inside her burned SUV, which had crashed down an embankment off Arrowhead Road near Highway 26 in The Blue Mountains.
Court documents obtained by CTV News allege he killed his wife inside their Collingwood home sometime between January 25 and 26, then moved and burned her body before it was found burned in the fiery wreck.
The couple had been married for more than a decade and had two children.
A first-degree murder conviction comes with a life sentence and no chance of parole for at least 25 years.
Schwalm's next court appearance is scheduled for May .
The allegations against him have not been tested in court.
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Police clear pro-Palestinian protesters from Columbia University while clashes break out at UCLA
The pro-Palestinian demonstration that paralyzed Columbia University ended in dramatic fashion, with police carrying riot shields bursting into a building that protesters took over the previous night and making dozens of arrests. On the other side of the country, clashes broke out early Wednesday between duelling groups at the University of California, Los Angeles.
Poilievre kicked out of Commons after calling Prime Minister Justin Trudeau 'wacko'
Testy exchanges between the prime minister and his chief opponent ended with the Opposition leader and one of his MPs being ejected from the House of Commons on Tuesday -- and the rest of Conservative caucus walking out of the chamber in protest.
WATCH Arnold Schwarzenegger spotted filming in Elora, Ont.
The name of the project has not been officially released although it’s widely believed to be the Netflix series FUBAR.
WATCH Moose strolls through Fredericton
A Fredericton woman is awe-struck after seeing a moose stroll down a city street on Tuesday.
Baby, grandparents among 4 people killed in wrong-way police chase on Ontario's Hwy. 401
A police chase which started with a liquor store robbery in Bowmanville Monday night ended in tragedy some 20 minutes later when a suspect fleeing police entered Highway 401 in the wrong direction and caused a pileup which killed an infant and the child's grandparents, as well as the suspect, investigators say.
Freeland leaves capital gains tax change out of coming budget implementation bill, here's why
Deputy Prime Minister and Finance Minister Chrystia Freeland will be tabling yet another omnibus bill to pass a sweeping range of measures promised in her April 16 federal budget, though left out of the legislation will be the government's proposed capital gains tax change.
Sword-wielding man attacks passersby in London, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring 4 others
A man wielding a sword attacked members of the public and police officers in a northeast London suburb Tuesday, killing a 14-year-old boy and injuring four other people, British authorities said.
Man dies after suffering cardiac arrest while waiting in ER, widow wants investigation
When an ambulance took David Lippert to the hospital in March of 2023, the 68-year-old Kitchener, Ont., executive was hoping to find out why he was feeling weak and unable to walk. Some 24 hours later, he was found unresponsive in the ER.
Eviction for landlord's use was legitimate, despite owners' partial move, B.C. court rules
A B.C. judge has upheld the eviction of a family from their North Vancouver townhouse, finding that the landlords did not take an unreasonable amount of time to move into the home after the tenants vacated it.