Jordan Manners was shot at close range, a fact made clear by the powder markings on his jacket, the Crown attorney said in opening statements at the first-degree murder trial for two men accused in the teen's shooting death nearly four years ago.

Aaron del Rizzo gave his opening statement Monday in the trial for the shooting death of the 15-year-old at C.W. Jefferys Collegiate in 2007.

It was the first day of the second trial for the men, who can only be identified as J.W. and C.D. under the Youth Criminal Justice Act because they were 17 when Manners was shot.

The first trial ended in a mistrial and the two have pleaded not guilty.

Del Rizzo told the seven-woman, five-man jury that Manners, who was interested in basketball and music, was shot with a .25-calibre bullet and discovered collapsed in one of the school's stairwells.

The bullet pierced and went through the teenager's heart, del Rizzo said, eventually ending up lodged in his shoulder.

The jury heard there was little blood as there was no exit wound.

In his submission, del Rizzo said Manners was having trouble talking and breathing after he collapsed. Those who found him didn't realize the teen had been shot.

Before del Rizzo began his opening statement Monday, the judge in the case informed the jurors that the first trial ended in a mistrial. However, he warned them not to speculate about what may have happened.

Defence lawyer Donald McLeod told reporters outside the courthouse that "there's always going to be the idea that they're going to be wondering what happened at the last trial, but the judge was very good to tell them that it ended in a mistrial."

Outside the courthouse Manners' mother Loreen Small said life without her son has been hard to bear.

"His birthday is coming up," she said. "It was the March Break, it was Christmas, it was everything and there's no Jordan."

Small said a second trial "is going to be hard," but took a seat in the courtroom before Monday's proceedings began. However, she left before the del Rizzo addressed court and did not return.

With a report from CTV Toronto's Austin Delaney