Criminal claims cop ‘hurled’ him off roof

A local lawyer says her client suffered a fractured spine after a Niagara Regional Police officer kicked him off a roof during a botched break-in attempt, causing him to fall five metres to the ground.

Jason Gorman, 36, is suing the police service and Const. Drew Scobie for compensation for the injuries he sustained following an incident at a McLeod Road plaza in Niagara Falls on Sept. 19, 2011.

“He’s waited seven years to come here and tell you his story,” lawyer Margaret Hoy said Tuesday in Superior Court of Justice in Welland.

In her opening address to the jury, Hoy said Gorman admits to trying to break into a convenience store at the plaza. His plan was to cut holes in the roof and lower himself into the store and steal food and cigarettes.

“He was dead broke,” she said. “He did something he’s not proud of. He did something wrong.”

While on the roof, she told the jury, Gorman heard footsteps behind him.

“He ended up hurled over that wall and fell on to the pavement,” she said.

Gorman was taken to Greater Niagara General Hospital where he was initially told he was never going to walk again.

He subsequently pleaded guilty to the attempted break-in.

“Life hasn’t been easy for Jason,” Hoy said. “He’s moved on and he’s tried to be a good dad and he’s here for justice.”

Toronto lawyer David Boghosian, who represents Scobie and the police service, disputes the plaintiff’s claim, saying Gorman concocted a “scheme” in order to make money.

“Ultimately, this case is about credibility,” he told the jury in his opening address.

Boghosian said Gorman has a “lengthy” criminal record with convictions for a variety of offences.

He said the evidence will prove the plaintiff either jumped or fell from the roof in an attempt to avoid arrest and “doing yet another stint in jail.”

He said Scobie, a 12-year police veteran and former member of Canada’s national rowing team, has an unblemished record.

“Const. Scobie is not the kind of person to commit the heinous, despicable and premeditated act Mr. Gorman is accusing him of.”

He maintains Gorman fell or slipped prior to Scobie arriving on the roof.

“The first time he saw Mr. Gorman, Mr. Gorman was on the ground,” he said. “He certainly did not kick or push Mr. Gorman off that roof.”

The trial is expected to last three weeks and hear from approximately 30 witnesses.