Lawyers want case against convicted officers thrown out
Convictions against three Calgary police officers in an alleged corruption case should be thrown out because of late disclosure, one of their lawyers said Tuesday.
Defence counsel Paul Brunnen, who represents Bradford McNish, said he received disclosure of a pre-trial statement by the Crown’s key witness just last month, four months after his client was convicted. Brunnen said he and defence lawyers Jim Lutz and Pat Fagan will seek a judicial stay from Justice Bryan Mahoney, which would end their clients’ prosecutions.
“Had we had this information, we would have proceeded on a different basis,” Brunnen told Mahoney.
Crown prosecutors Leah Boyd and Julie Snowdon conducted an interview with Akele Taylor on Jan. 18, in advance of her testimony against McNish, Bryan Morton and Anthony Braile.
Notes of the interview taken by Det. Todd Nichol weren’t disclosed to the defence due to oversight.
“She appears to say things, according to the notes of Det. Nichol, that are contradictory to what she said at trial,” Brunnen said.
“This disclosure is quite significant,” he told Mahoney. “I would have taken a different tack with a number of witnesses.”
Brunnen said the information was crucial for the three accused to make full answer and defence in their case, since Taylor’s credibility was the central issue.
“The defence tried to cast her in a bad light,” he said, adding the new information could have assisted in that endeavour. “The credibility of Ms. Taylor is obviously crucial. This information appears to contradict some of what she said under oath.”
But Snowdon said the Jan. 18 interview did not disclose any new information from Taylor.
“We have to disclose them if there is something new, or materially different,” she said.
“We did, in fact, comply with that disclosure requirement.”
In April, Mahoney convicted all three officers of unlawful use of a police computer database.
Morton and McNish were also convicted of breach of trust of a public office, and Morton and Braile were found guilty of criminal harassment and bribery.
The three had been hired to take part in a private investigation into Taylor, which was paid for by her wealthy ex-boyfriend.
Braile was later fired from the force over an unrelated incident, while Morton and McNish remain suspended without pay.
Morton and McNish were to face a sentencing hearing Tuesday, but that has been delayed pending the stay application. If Mahoney rejects the stay bid, the lawyers will argue for a mistrial.
The judge will hear arguments Nov. 1