Murder convictions against two Red Scorpion gangsters should not be thrown out despite allegations of police misconduct in the case, a Crown prosecutor argued Monday.
Mark Levitz urged B.C. Supreme Court Justice Catherine Wedge to deny an application by Cody Haevischer and Matthew Johnston to stay their murder charges over their alleged mistreatment in jail and by investigators.
鈥淭hey have been found guilty of the most horrific crimes 鈥� a gangland mass murder which had its genesis in the planned conspiracy to murder Corey Lal, who was a rival drug dealer,鈥� Levitz said. 鈥淭he motive for Corey Lal鈥檚 murder was greed and power. The motives for the other five murders were self-preservation and subversion of the criminal justice system.鈥�
Even if there was some police misconduct, as alleged, staying the charges would be a 鈥渄rastic extraordinary remedy, which is very rarely imposed and can only be imposed in the clearest of cases,鈥� Levitz said.
鈥淣ot entering the verdicts and not sentencing them for their involvement in what can only be described as the most serious offences known in our criminal law multiplied times six would be a grossly disproportionate response to their allegations of state misconduct.鈥�
Haevischer and Johnston were found guilty Oct. 2 of six counts of first-degree murder and conspiracy for the Oct. 19, 2007 executions of rival Corey Lal, his brother Michael, associates Eddie Narong and Ryan Bartolomeo, as well as bystanders Chris Mohan and Ed Schellenberg.
After the convictions, their lawyers asked that the guilty verdicts not be entered, nor their clients sentenced, until their abuse of process application is heard.
If a stay is granted, Levitz said, 鈥渢hey walk away free men notwithstanding their role as co-perpetrators of these six murders.鈥�
Levitz wants the defence application thrown out after legal arguments conclude this week, while Haevischer and Johnston want to call police witnesses over three more weeks in December.
Levitz said the Surrey Six victims鈥� families would be 鈥渄enied their day in court鈥� if the stay is granted.
鈥淭he price for a stay is not worth the gain to the integrity of the justice system,鈥� he said. 鈥淪ociety will not tolerate the applicants鈥� windfall if the verdicts are not recorded and the applicants not sentenced.鈥�
Earlier Monday, a lawyer for four former investigators on the Surrey Six case tried to get a publication ban on evidence and submissions at the abuse of process hearing.
The cops are scheduled to have a jury trial starting next September on a series of charges stemming from their work on the Surrey Six file.
91原创 Sun lawyer Mike Wagner argued against the ban, as did lawyers for both Haevischer and Johnston. Wedge denied the ban application.
Paul Johnston, Derek Brassington, Danny Michaud and Dave Attew were charged in 2011 after an Ontario Provincial Police investigation into allegations that Brassington had an affair with a potential Surrey Six witness.
Brassington is facing seven charges including obstruction of justice, breach of trust, fraud and compromising the safety of a witness. Johnston and Michaud have been charged with breach of trust, obstruction of justice and misleading the OPP investigators. Attew, Brassington's supervisor during the Surrey Six investigation, faces six counts, including breach of trust, fraud and obstruction of justice.
The hearing will continue Tuesday, though will likely proceed in camera over two days later this week related to details of how police dealt with an unidentified confidential informant in the investigation.
