Frontier Justice on a cold winter’s day

Dec 21, 2016

Sharbot Lake Criminal Court has always had a reputation for informality as compared to the courts in Kingston and Perth, which is something that court officials tend to talk about during the breaks. Court proceedings held in the township hall, where the Festival of Trees has just been cleaned up and the decorations for the New Year’s dance are next to come, do tend to be more informal than the proceedings in 200 year old Victorian era courthouses.

At this month’s court, however, things were more informal than ever, since the lawyer assigned for the role of Duty Counsel did not show up, leaving Judge Griffen to work directly with accused parties to determine if their matters could be resolved on the spot or should be put over to the January date. At one point, the clerk of the court was not even in place, leaving Griffen to fumble through the papers on the clerk’s desk.

“Now, I don’t even have clerk, Griffen said as he leaned over from his desk to the clerk’s desk to find some paperwork.

“I’m here, trying to get a hold of duty counsel,” the clerk said, his head popping out from behind the false wall behind the desks.

After a short break, Griffen returned and said Duty Counsel was not coming.

Still, the wheels of justice did not fall off in Sharbot Lake this week. Two of the five matters before the court were resolved, and the rest are progressing.

Convictions
Donald Kellar, 52, pleaded guilty to a charge of un-authorized possession of a firearm. Kellar was in a truck driving on Westgate Road, near Hwy. 7, west of Arden, on November 17, when the truck was stopped by Constable Lefaivre because the driver of the truck did not have his seat belt fastened correctly. There were a number of rifles in the vehicle as the occupants were hunting. While the rest of the occupants had Possession/Acquisition Licenses (PAL) for their rifles, Mr. Kellar did not have one for the Remington Woodmaster 742 that was located near where he was sitting.

The gun is the property of his son and was in the care of his wife when he took it to go hunting.

Judge Griffen gave him a 12-month probation order, and asked how his wife had reacted.

“I have six months house arrest, dishes, floor sweeping, you don’t want to know the rest, your honour,” he said.

Judge Griffen did not impose a prohibition on owning firearms on Mr. Kellar, although he said the conviction might make it difficult for him to get one.

Brandon Gill, 27, was unlikely to receive legal aide and pleaded guilty on his first appearance on a charge of assault. The details of the case are covered by a publication ban. He received a 12-month probation order.

First Appearance
Nicholas Holmes, 41, is facing six charges related to impaired driving and driving without permits and while disqualified. He is seeking legal aide and will return on January 16th.

Ongoing
Wayne Kimberly, 61, is charged with failing to comply with probation, failure or refusal to provide a breath sample, operating a vehicle while impaired by alcohol, and public mischief. He has paid part of a retainer to a lawyer from Kingston, and received an adjournment until February 13 to pay the rest of the retainer and will then appear with counsel to plead to the charges or set a date for trial.

Alison Potter, 39, charged with production of marijuana with intent to sell, possession of an illegal substance, an un-authorized possession of a firearm. She was not in court, and a warrant with discretion was issued. She will need to appear in court on January 16th to avoid arrest.