Stage collapse charges stayed due to delay

TECHNICIAN DIED

In the spring, with the case set to wrap up after 40 trial days scattered over 14 months, the presiding judge, Shaun Nakatsuru, declared he had lost jurisdiction given his appointment to a higher court. That decision led to a senior justice declaring a mistrial in May, and a new hearing was set to begin Monday and wrap in May.

However, lawyers for Live Nation and Cugliari argued before Nelson last month for a stay in light of the delays. The parties agreed her ruling would also apply to Optex.

“It is important to emphasize that timely justice is not just important to persons facing charges,” Nelson said in her ruling. “It is also important to our society at large.”

A stay is a remedy of last resort given that it signals a “failure on the part of the administration of justice,” Nelson said.

The judge acknowledged her ruling would have a “negative impact” on the victims of the stage collapse, especially on Johnson’s family.

“No doubt, this decision will be incomprehensible to Mr. Johnson’s family, who can justifiably complain that justice has not been done,” Nelson said.

Neither Johnson’s father, Ken Johnson, who works for a scaffolding safety association in the U.K., and has attended some of the previous hearings, nor Live Nation, which has called what happened a “tragic incident,” was immediately available to comment. However, Live Nation’s lawyer acknowledged the ruling would be “brutal” for the drum technician’s relatives.

Crown lawyer, Dave McCaskill, said he was not surprised by the stay decision given the current state of Canadian law. He said it was too early to consider any appeal but said Nelson was correct in one assessment:

“The family and friends of Mr. Johnson will be quite discouraged and disappointed by this, and perhaps not comprehend why this has come to pass, and why there’s never been an adjudication on its merits,” McCaskill said.

The collapse, which the prosecution blamed on inadequate safety measures, prompted Radiohead to put off part of its 2012 European tour.