The 95-year-old Vernon man accused of murder in 2013 has died in a Kamloops facility.
A family friend confirmed that John (Jack) Daymouth Furman died on Tuesday, Jan. 28.
Furman, who suffered from severe dementia, was being treated in Kamloops after being charged with second-degree murder in August 2013 in connection to the death of William May, 85.
The two men had been roommates at the Polson extended care facility beside Vernon Jubilee Hospital.
On Aug. 18, 2013, shortly before 11 p.m., Vernon RCMP members were dispatched to the facility after staff called 911 to report that Furman had assaulted May, who died of his injuries.
Crown counsel stayed the case against Furman in November, stating at the time “the Criminal Justice Branch has concluded that a prosecution against Mr. Furman is no longer required in the public interest.”
May’s family were informed of the stay of proceedings and Crown said they “were understanding of the circumstances.”
Furman, a widower, had no children and was supported in court proceedings by close friends.
He was a decorated Second World War veteran, enlisting with the King’s Own Rifles and becoming a volunteer member of the First Special Service Force — a group dubbed ‘The Devil’s Brigade’ by the Germans in fighting near Anzio, Italy – in 1942.
Furman was discharged from the army in 1946 and, a short time later, according to the Greater Vernon Museum archives, he married his childhood sweetheart, Myrle Dunn, from Lethbridge, Alta.
They moved to Vernon in 1971.
Furman received a Bronze Star medal from the U.S, army as recognition of his Second World War heroics in 2007.
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