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SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE - Former MLA and cabinet minister Henry Zoe was not present in territorial court on Tuesday, the first day the court addressed his charge of sexual assault. Defence lawyer Caroline Wawzonek appeared on his behalf and accepted evidence from the Crown.

Crown prosecutor John McFarlane said the Crown will proceed "by summary conviction" as opposed to indictment, the latter carrying a more severe penalty.

According to RCMP, the charge stems from an incident at a downtown Yellowknife apartment on Feb. 20. The matter was adjourned by Chief Judge Brian Bruser to June 2.

Zoe is no stranger to the courts. He has twice been convicted of assault, including once for spousal assault in 1994, while serving as the MLA of North Slave - now known as Monfwi.

In April 2005, after regaining a seat in the legislative assembly, he was convicted of resisting arrest and stepped down as MLA seven weeks later.

He ran for the seat again in 2007, but was defeated by current education minister Jackson Lafferty.

Jail time for cocaine dealer

A man who was busted twice by RCMP within several days for possession and trafficking crack cocaine was given two years less a day in jail.

Kirk Magrum, 33, was sentenced in territorial court on April 24 for trafficking, possession with the purpose of trafficking and one count of possession of property obtained by crime.

Magrum was arrested after attempting to sell cocaine on Feb. 6 while accompanied by his common-law spouse, who was seven months pregnant. The woman swallowed two grams of crack cocaine in baggies when police showed up, according to agreed facts between the Crown and defence lawyers. She was then taken to the hospital to have the crack retrieved from her stomach through induced vomiting.

Magrum was caught breaking the law again on Feb. 13 after RCMP observed him in a drug transaction with another man in front of After 8 Billiards.

Magrum's spouse will be tried for trafficking, unrelated to the aforementioned incidents, and will face a judge and jury at a yet to be determined date.

Inmate keeps quiet

A man currently being held in custody appeared in territorial court Tuesday, but didn't say a word. Chief Judge Brian Bruser attempted to speak with the accused - charged with one count each of uttering threats and careless use of a firearm on Feb. 3, 2009 - but the man barely looked up as he sat in the prisoners' dock, slowly rocking back and forth.

Bruser described the accused as "someone who has chosen to be mute." Asked to sit at the table with his lawyer, the man shook his head.

"You've got to think about whether you want to start talking or not," said Bruser, adding the sooner the accused chooses to speak the sooner his charges can be dealt with.

"You can expect to spend a lot more time sitting there," he said. "Your choice."

The man was taken back to jail until his next court appearance, set for June 2.