A city dweller was ordered to stand trial for the murder of his mother

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A jury had enough evidence to weigh a Calgary woman's alleged slaying at the hands of her adult son, a judge decided Wednesday to charge her with murder.

Judge Greg Stirling committed Alex (Ahin) Xu to stand trial at the end of a three-day preliminary inquest on charges of second-degree murder in connection with his mother's death before a jury in the Calgary Crown Court.

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Xu, 21, was arrested on June 30 last year in connection with the death of 56-year-old Alice (Jingying) Al.

Crown prosecutors Vicki Faulkner and Paul Marcellus called three witnesses before closing the case Tuesday morning.

But in a rare move, defense attorneys Clayton Rice and Heather Ferg called Wednesday's three witnesses to admit that Stirling had enough evidence to bring their client to trial.

The test for conviction is very low, and judges hearing preliminary hearings cannot weigh the strength or weakness of the evidence.

At the start of Monday's hearing, Stirling ordered a publication ban on evidence presented before him.

Sue was arrested shortly after police arrived at the 1400 block of NW 29th Avenue around 3:30 a.m. on June 30, 2023.

Arriving at the scene, law enforcement officers found Al's body.

Soon after Sue's arrest, she was referred to the Southern Alberta Forensic Psychiatric Center for evaluation at the request of Dr. Ken Hashman, a psychiatrist who expressed concern about the defendant's mental health.

“There's a letter from Dr. Hashman saying he wants a 30-day fitness evaluation,” Faulkner told Judge Karen Molle during Xu's first court appearance last July 4.

An examination determined that he was fit to stand trial.

Sue, who remains in custody, will appear in a Calgary court on May 24 to set her court date.

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