By Taylor MacPherson

Accused penitentiary rioter pleads not guilty

Nov 22, 2017 | 1:00 PM

One of the fourteen men accused of participating in a fatal riot at the Saskatchewan Penitentiary last year entered his plea this morning, denying both of the criminal charges against him.

Brett Babisky, 28, appeared in Prince Albert Provincial Court this morning over a video link from the federal prison where he is held, wearing the bright blue t-shirt issued to federal inmates. Babisky is charged with rioting while masked and wearing a disguise with intent to commit an indictable offence. Both crimes carry a maximum possible sentence of 10 years under Canada’s Criminal Code.

Babisky pleaded not guilty to both counts through his Legal Aid defence lawyer Pamela Cuelenaere. The alleged rioter will be back in court tomorrow morning to set a date for his trial.

Although Babisky became the first of the 14 accused rioters to enter pleas today, he was not the first to come before the courts. Nineteen-year-old John Linklater, the youngest of the accused rioters, was granted bail earlier this month and was set to be released from custody last Friday. Linklater, who is accused of destroying a surveillance camera during the uprising and has not yet pleaded, will return to Prince Albert court in December as a free man.

The riot, which occurred Dec. 14, 2016, involved nearly 200 medium-security inmates and led to one death and at least eight injuries. According to a representative with the Union of Canadian Correctional Officers, the rioting inmates were unhappy over food quality and portion sizes, and caused significant damage to the facility and to each other before the prison’s emergency response team could retake the medium-security portions of the penitentiary.

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Correctional Service Canada said three inmates suffered apparent stab wounds during the riot, which resulted in the death of 43-year-old inmate Jason Leonard Bird, who was serving a sentence of two years and seven months for break-and-enter offenses. The prison’s response team fired shotguns at the rioters during the battle, which left a further six inmates with non-life-threatening injuries. One correctional officer was hospitalized as a precautionary measure.

No assault or homicide charges have yet been laid in connection with the riot. The accused participants are variously facing charges of rioting, rioting while masked, wearing a disguise with intent, mischief over $5,000, and obstruction of justice.

The 12 other men accused of taking part in the riot will be back in court Dec. 13. All are presumed innocent at this stage.

Babisky is not to be confused with 31-year-old Vernon Bigsky, who is also facing charges in connection with the riot and bears a similar surname.

Taylor.macpherson@jpbg.ca

On Twitter: @TMacPhersonNews