Bail granted to 1 of 8 teenage girls charged with murder in Toronto

An Ontario judge on Thursday granted bail to one of eight girls threatened with second-degree murder following the recent death of a homeless man in Toronto.

Bail, with a series of conditions, is set at $9,500 with two sureties. It is unclear which of the teenagers charged in the case received bail.

The other seven accused appeared in youth court at the Ontario Court of Justice on Thursday morning. Each is scheduled to reappear in court on January 5, when another date will be set for their bond hearings, scheduled for early February.

The teenager who was released on bail must stay home except when she goes to school, is not allowed to have weapons and cannot associate with the other accused teenagers or contact the little one friend of the victim.

She must also surrender her passport, cannot travel outside the province, is not allowed to own a cell phone, and cannot go on the Internet except for school purposes.

Judge Maria Sirivar said she would provide reasons for the bail decision on January 10.

Teenagers allegedly assaulted and stabbed a man

Toronto police say three 13-year-olds, three 14-year-olds and two 16-year-olds allegedly stabbed a man after they « assaulted » him downtown on December 18.

The identity of the accused cannot be disclosed under the Youth Criminal Justice Act. Toronto police said three of the girls had previous contact with police.

The 59-year-old was taken to hospital by paramedics with life-threatening injuries and died a short time later, police said.

Police say the victim moved into Toronto’s homeless shelter system in late fall and has a family support system.

A witness told CBC Toronto that in the moments before the man was stabbed, the girls tried to take alcohol from him and the victim protected her.

Toronto police said they are not releasing the identity of the victim at this time.