After five weeks of testimony, a Sudbury jury of 12 has started deliberating Tuesday in the Robert Steven Wright murder trial.
One alternate jury member was excused.
Wright, 43, is charged with second-degree murder in the stabbing death of Renee Sweeney on Jan. 27, 1998, while she worked at an Adults Only Video store on Paris Street in Sudbury.
Renee Sweeney was 23 years old when she was murdered in Sudbury.
Both sides gave their closing arguments Monday and Justice Robbie Gordon is giving the jury members instructions Tuesday morning before they begin deliberating on whether to find Wright guilty or innocent.
He has been in jail since his arrest in December 2018.
A second-degree murder conviction in Canada comes with an automatic life in prison sentence, with parole eligibility between 10 to 25 years as decided by a judge.
CTVNewsNorthernOntario.ca has been inside the courtroom for the entire trial, find previous coverage here.
Digital content producer Darren MacDonald will continue to provide the latest details from court, check back for updates.
Background
The brutal stabbing death of 23-year-old Renee Sweeney rocked the City of Sudbury to its core on Jan. 27, 1998.
Police searched for her killer for two decades and finally charged Robert Steven Wright, who was 18 years old at the time of the murder. He has been held in jail since his arrest in Dec. 2018.
After several delays, the trial began Feb. 21, 2023, just after the 25th anniversary of Sweeney's death.
CTV News Digital content producer Darren MacDonald is bringing the latest from the courtroom every day and will have full coverage of the trial here.
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Renee Sweeney was 23 years old when she was murdered in Sudbury. 
