Word quickly spread across Saint John and the rest of New Brunswick following Monday morning’s decision to grant Dennis Oland a new murder trial.
"I wasn't surprised by it,” said one Saint John man. “Hopefully it comes out in the very end. Whatever the decision is, it's fine, it's fair."
But reaction extends further than just New Brunswick. It has people talking around the Maritimes and across this country.
Many lawyers and other legal experts weighed in with their opinions.
"If that's what gets somebody a life sentence in jail and convicted for murdering their father, that by all accounts, they had a civil, complicated relationship with, I'm glad to live in a country where the Court of Appeal says, ‘You know what? That's not enough for us,’" said criminal defence lawyer Ari Goldlink from Toronto.
The appeal court rejected Oland's claim that the verdict was unreasonable, but found the trial judge did not properly instruct the jury on evidence around the jacket Oland was wearing the day of the murder.
At the courthouse in Fredericton, the relief was evident from Dennis Oland's family and friends.
"It's good news, we're really happy," said Oland family friend Larry Cain.
Greg Marquis has written a book about Richard Oland's murder. Monday’s decision means there may be a few chapters left to be told.
"I thought over the weekend it could go either way," said Marquis. "Now that a new trial has been ordered... I'm going to keep following the case and doing the research as if I'm writing another book."
There's no word yet on when Dennis Oland’s new trial will begin. He will enter a bail hearing Tuesday morning.
With files from CTV Atlantic’s Laura Brown and The Canadian Press.
