Judge finds enough grounds to allow withdrawal of guilty pleas

A Medicine Hat judge will allow the withdrawal of guilty pleas entered by a Seven Persons man on serious drug trafficking charges — although video evidence from the local Remand Centre backed up testimony made by the accused’s former lawyer at a hearing in January.

“In this very unique set of circumstances I’m not satisfied the guilty pleas were entered voluntarily ... or if we proceeded that it would not be a miscarriage of justice,” said Judge Eric Brooks in his ruling on Thursday over the pleas entered by 53-year-old Aaron Grant Hotchen in Sept. 2017 to drug trafficking and firearm charges.

At a January hearing, Hotchen made multiple complaints on how his former counsel, Greg White, handled his case. This included testimony that the night before guilty pleas were entered, White only spent five to 10 minutes with him at the Remand Centre to go over and sign an agreed statement of facts. Testimony from White said the meeting lasted 60 to 90 minutes. This agreed statement of facts was not officially entered alongside guilty pleas the next day.

The court heard Thursday that video later obtained from Remand Centre by Crown and defence showed the pair met together for an hour and 10 minutes.

“It think that speaks for itself,” said the Crown, arguing that Hotchen’s motivation to withdraw the plea is due to not liking the possible sentence.

“Obviously that one part of the argument has to be discounted,” said defence counsel Marc Crarer, but added that the other grounds for the withdrawal of the plea still stand.

Brooks affirmed in his ruling that he accepts White’s testimony about what occurred, rejecting “in large measure” Hotchen’s testimony.

“I do not accept that there has there is enough to indicate inadequate counsel,” said Brooks.

But several aspects of what occurred troubled Brooks.

This included Hotchen not wearing glasses when initialing the first few paragraphs of the statement of facts, he said, that there was a focus by Hotchen at the time on obtaining release from custody to put his affairs in order — which could be viewed as an inducement since he had been in custody for months.

And that Hotchen seemed — even to White — as being under duress, and was not in the frame of mind to plead guilty. Hotchen had testified that at the time he was under duress as his sister was extremely ill, his dogs were in the pound, and his trailer had been heavily damaged by a fire and needed to be moved.

The next court appearance is now set for April 3.