Judge raises timeline issue regarding murder accused’s trial
A Supreme Court decision that set a new framework on when cases have to be tried is affecting the scheduling of a Pictou County man’s trial. Robert Jason MacKenzie, the 37-year-old man accused of second-degree murder in Nicole Campbell’s death, appeared in Pictou Supreme Court on Thursday with his defence lawyer Elizabeth Cooper to confirm whether dates tentatively set during a previous hearing would be viable. MacKenzie is charged with the second-degree murder of 33-year-old Campbell who was found in a New Glasgow apartment Dec. 30, 2015. MacKenzie also faces charges of robbery and carrying a weapon with the purpose to commit a crime between Nov. 30 and Dec. 17, 2015. Justice Patrick Duncan noted the dates previously reserved for MacKenzie’s trial — Sept. 10, 2018 to Sept. 28, 2018 — on the murder charge would be three months after the “Jordan threshold.” The judgment, commonly referred to as the Jordan decision, explored whether the accused’s right to be tried within a reasonable time had been infringed after a delay of more than four years between charges and the end of trial. The delay was determined unreasonable, the proceedings were stayed and new timelines were set — 18 months for cases tried in provincial court and 30 months for cases in the superior court or cases tried in provincial court after a preliminary inquiry. Delay caused or waived by the defence doesn’t count toward the timeline. Duncan noted the trial would need to take place by June 2018 to be within 30 months. After receiving instructions from her client, Cooper said MacKenzie was not willing to waive the delay. Duncan also asked if three weeks was going to be enough time for the trial, with Crown attorney Jody McNeill noting four weeks had initially been estimated. Duncan asked that the Crown and defence figure out an accurate time frame at least a week before they return to court for MacKenzie’s next appearance. He also asked that pre-trial conference reports be filed a week ahead of that date as well. MacKenzie returns to court on Aug. 17.