Former GM guard wins $624,000 judgment

Worker filed lawsuit against Niagara police for malicious prosecution

A former security guard at the GM plant in St. Catharines who was falsely accused of theft and left financially devastated as a result has been awarded a $624,261.55 judgment in a lawsuit against Niagara Regional Police

John Hall, 64, of Niagara Falls, filed the civil suit for malicious prosecution, negligent investigation, false arrest, misfeasance in public office and breaches of charter rights.

Criminal charges against Hall were dismissed in 2012 by Ontario Court Justice Peter Wilkie. Hall’s trial lawyer, Michael Del Gobbo, didn’t call a single witness.

“They had no reason to charge me,” Hall said. “My lawyer told me we didn’t even need to bring a defence. I lost my job the day after I was charged. It was really stressful financially for quite a long time.”

Hall was working security at the General Motors facility in St. Catharines on Dec. 21, 2009, when the plant had a power outage, which was traced to an electrical cabinet. There were obvious signs of an arc flash explosion.

GM was concerned about recent copper theft from the plant but had been unable to catch anyone.

The theory advanced by GM administration and the private security company for which Hall worked, Securitas, was that someone was trying to steal a copper bar from the electrical

cabinet and caused the arc flash.

An expert electrician called at the civil trial said any number of conditions could also have caused the arc flash — including dust, temperature and changes in the environment.

Nonetheless, eight days later, after a voluntary three-hour interview at police headquarters, the NRP arrested Hall.

The comments by the judge in the civil lawsuit, Justice Jacalyn D. Walters, were scathing toward the detective and arresting officer in the case, Steve Magistrale.

“Magistrale’s assertions that he subjectively believed he had probable grounds to arrest are not credible,” the judge said in a written verdict. “How else can one explain the discrepancies, exaggerations, inaccuracies and an outright lie in Magistrale’s

written reports and affidavits.”

Hall said he finally feels vindicated in the wake of the civil ruling.

“At the same time, nothing happened to the detective, as far as we know,” Hall said. “The judge saw what this detective did. I think he should be held accountable for what he did. As far as I can tell, he hasn’t.”

The NRP said the service has just received the judgment and is reviewing it and exploring legal options.

“It would be inappropriate to comment further at this time,” said spokesperson Stephanie Sabourin.

In an added twist, Hall’s wife Valerie is a detective constable with Niagara Regional Police. She had no comment.

Walters detailed some of the errors made during Hall’s arrest, including one that showed police mistook symptoms of a common cold for injuries from an electrical explosion. When police arrived at the plant, they

were told anyone exposed to an arc flash would likely be dead. The judge noted Hall finished his shift, and there was no evidence of any marks or injuries on his hands — or evidence of copper splatter or burns on his clothes.

Alan Caslin, the former regional chair, inadvertently helped Hall in his judgment. Caslin was in GM management at the time and was part of the team at the factory that zeroed in on Hall as a “person of interest” and passed his name on to police.

After Caslin finished his testimony at the criminal trial, he left the courtroom and highfived Magistrale.

“To interact in this way with a Crown witness in a criminal trial is cogent and persuasive evidence of not just an impropriety, but of malice,” Walters said of Magistrale.

Magistrale denied the highfive happened, and Caslin said he couldn’t recall it. The judge