Judge 'baffled' by RCMP testimony
Hay River woman found not guilty of trafficking cocaine
John McFadden
Northern News Services
Monday, March 23, 2015
SOMBA K'E/YELLOWKNIFE
A Hay River woman has been found not guilty of possession of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking after the judge in the case ruled there were inconsistencies in evidence given by RCMP officers.
Angel Martel, 22, was found guilty of the lesser charge of simple possession. She was sentenced on March 10 to 45 days in jail by Judge Garth Malakoe. Martel was then released from custody after having served more than 45 days in pre-trial custody.
Martel was charged on April 24 after six members of the Hay River RCMP executed a search warrant at 2461 Woodland Drive. Five baggies of crack cocaine were found in her purse, totaling 1.9 grams.
In his written decision, Malakoe stated that there were two issues that were important to whether the cocaine was for the purpose of trafficking. They were the effect of inconsistencies in the testimony of RCMP Const. Steve Beck and the factual assumptions in a report written by Edmonton RCMP drug expert, Cpl. Eric Irani.
Malakoe stated that he was "baffled" by the testimony of Beck who said on the witness stand that there were five baggies of rock cocaine and five baggies of powdered cocaine found in the purse. He pointed out that Const. Jonathan Newcombe, who was in charge of the evidence that day, denied there was any powdered cocaine seized from either the purse or the residence that day.
The judge essentially agreed with defence lawyer Peter Harte, who said it didn't make sense that if Beck, a trained police officer, was taking notes as events were occurring, he would invent the presence of five baggies of powdered cocaine. Malakoe ruled Beck's assertion there were five baggies of powdered cocaine was "incorrect." He stated this was an unfortunate finding given the importance the court places on the testimony of officers who are making contemporaneous notes.
Malakoe then addressed the factual assumptions in the expert report. He noted that Irani's report referred to 2.9 grams of cocaine even though only 1.9 grams were found in Martel's purse. Malakoe ruled that the value of Irani's testimony was diminished because some of the facts that led to his conclusion had been disproved. He stated that was shown by Irani's refusal to answer certain questions directly while on the witness stand.
Malakoe also pointed out that Irani referred to 10 baggies of cocaine being seized that day, even though only eight baggies were found in total.
Malakoe also stated that Irani viewed the cocaine seized from the purse while on the witness stand and testified that he believed it was powdered cocaine, not crack cocaine. Malakoe also ruled that the cellphones, police scanners, firearms and cash found at the scene are not necessarily evidence of drug trafficking by Martel, especially considering there were three other people in the home when it was raided.
In conclusion, he ruled that the Crown had not established that Martel possessed the 1.9 grams of cocaine for the purpose of trafficking.
Kindra Lakusta, the Crown prosecutor in the case, said she accepts and respects Malakoe's decision. There are no plans to appeal the verdict at this time, she said.
Lakusta did point out, however, that even though Malakoe had some issues with the testimony of two RCMP officers during the trial, he fully accepted the testimony of three other officers in finding Martel guilty of possession of cocaine.
