(File photo/paNOW Staff)

By Nigel Maxwell

Trial proceedings

Statement by accused tossed out in Midtown stabbing case

Sep 2, 2020 | 12:17 PM

A key piece of the Crown’s evidence in a Prince Albert aggravated assault case, has been deemed inadmissable by the judge overseeing the trial.

Courtney Faye Dillon, 33, was charged with aggravated assault in connection to an incident last January at a midtown apartment building. The victim was found with multiple stab wounds to the abdomen and neck area.

Dillon herself suffered a head injury after the officer on scene knocked down the apartment door to enter.

Last month defence lawyer Jock Kriegler filed a Charter challenge, arguing Dillon did not properly understand her rights, and also was in no condition to provide a reliable statement, when she spoke to police on the night of Jan. 25. In that statement, Dillon said she stabbed the 24-year-old woman in self-defence.

In her decision Tuesday, Judge Felicia Daunt agreed and raised concerns about the time stamp on the statement of the video and the time legal aid was initially called.

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“If the time stamp on the video is correct, Miss Dillon consulted counsel after she gave her statement to police,” Daunt said.

Explaining that every person in custody has the right to get legal advice upon arrest, Daunt said, based on the evidence shown to her, Dillon was in custody under the control of the police, and felt she had to do whatever she was told.

“She was told to sit in the interview room. She was not told she could choose to leave the interview room and go to a cell. She was not reminded that she need not say anything,” Daunt said.

Another reason for the Charter challenge was Dillon’s perceived state of mind at the time of the arrest. According to the evidence presented during trial, Dillon’s provided several “random” comments to police. In addition to naming her victim as “Adolf”, Dillon also claimed somebody used her body before “she was born into it.”

“At times the total quality of her voice changes almost like a different person is talking,” Daunt noted during Tuesday’s hearing.

As of the Crown’s witnesses, the police constable, who made the arrest, testified he did read Dillon her rights, and claimed she responded with “yeah” when asked if she understood. The issue during the trial has been that there was no actual video recording taken to support that claim.

“The comment ‘yeah’ must be considered in the context of a person who has suffered an injury to the head, and may either suffer from an mental illness or be under the influence of an unspecified drug,” Daunt said.

In his initial statement, the police constable said he did not smell liquor on Dillon’s breath, but also admitted he lacked the expertise to detect drug intoxication. He said Dillon acted sane prior to the arrest, and was quote “playing games” after. Daunt said the officer’s interaction with Dillon prior to the arrest was too brief to make meaningful insight about her behaviour patterns.

“An arrest is exactly the type of event that can trigger unusual reactions in a mentally, injured or intoxicated person,” Daunt said.

After hearing the judge’s decision, Kriegler said he had no plans to call any witnesses and the trial was adjourned to Oct. 7 for closing arguments.

Outside the courthouse, Crown Prosecutor Mary Ann Larson told paNOW the decision by the judge was not “catastrophic” to her case, and added while the statement’s admissibility would be helpful, she is still confident in the strength of the testimony from the other witnesses she presented.

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nigel.maxwell@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @nigelmaxwell