Woman found guilty of pulling pellet gun on teen

SALTWIRE NETWORK

A P.E.I. woman accused of pulling a pellet gun on a teen who thought it was a real handgun has been found guilty of three charges, including pointing a firearm.

Sarah Lynn Bernard appeared before Chief Judge Nancy Orr in provincial court in Charlottetown after a trial that heard from 11 witnesses.

Orr found Bernard guilty of pointing a firearm, uttering a threat and one count of assault.

During the trial that spanned two days, Bernard entered a guilty plea to damaging property after she smashed a phone that belonged to one of the teens.

In finding Bernard guilty, Orr said she was satisfied evidence from several teens who testified it was Bernard who pointed the gun and smashed the phone was reliable. On the first day of the trial on Jan. 16, the court heard from several teenagers who said they were leaving a party when a group of adults assaulted them.

One of the teens said Bernard stomped on his phone.

The boys also said Bernard pointed a gun at one of them and the court heard testimony that she threatened to shoot him.

RCMP officers responded after a 911 call about adults starting a fight with the teens.

Two officers who responded testified during the trial and the court heard they stopped on their way to the scene after dispatch updated them to say a firearm was involved. The officers put on hard body armour and got their long guns ready.

An RCMP officer who checked the weapon, which was a realistic-looking handgun, testified he realized it fired pellets.

On Feb. 7, three defence witnesses denied Bernard was the one who had the gun and they put the blame on a different woman.

Their version of events also involved the boys attacking one of them and banging on the house.

Orr said she didn’t believe Bernard’s testimony that she didn’t have the gun or threaten the teen.

Orr adjourned the matter until May 1 for sentencing.