Yellowknife (May 02/03) - Hard questions continue to dog one of the candidates running in Saturday's election for a new president of the North Slave Metis Alliance.

North Douglas called a press conference last Monday to respond to revelations of recent convictions for spousal assault. However, Douglas' version of the events is contradicted by court records.

Douglas admitted he was released from jail last November after completing a 90-day sentence at Yellowknife Correctional Centre.

His campaign manager Garth Wallbridge, in response to Yellowknifer questions, also stated the two convictions stemmed from the same incident. The sentence was to be served on weekends but he ended up serving the remaining part of his 90-day sentence consecutively.

Douglas said he made the decision to serve the time straight because he found it embarrassing to be strip searched every weekend before going to jail. This statement contradicts his court file which indicated Douglas was charged with breaching a condition to show up at YCC on time and sober each Saturday from Aug. 17 to Sept. 14.

In a letter to Alliance members to clear up the apparent inconsistency, Douglas said he wanted to switch from intermittent to straight time, but did not know the process for doing this.

"On my own, on a Saturday morning, I checked in at the RCMP in Yellowknife. I had been drinking the night before.

I was supposed to report at the jail at 8a.m. sober. Instead, I went to the police station a little after 8a.m. with a few personal items I would need to fulfil my sentence. I had residual alcohol in my system and on my breath."

The following Monday, he pleaded guilty to the breach and served his sentence with 14 additional days tacked on for the breach.

Again, contrary to Wallbridge's statement the two spousal assault convictions stem from the same incident, the court file indicated one assault occurred in December 2001 and the other incident took place three months later.

Wallbridge said he attended the trial as Douglas' friend to support him but did not have all the details until reviewing the court file on April 30. "What I recalled from when I was in court was that there was a sentence of 90 days and that the events in question related to North's wife. I now know that there were two separate events."

At the press conference, Douglas also denied having an alcohol problem. A letter from Douglas's mother in his court file states alcohol was a factor in his past crimes.

When asked by Yellowknifer to comment on the alcohol issue, Wallbridge responded in a fax: "North does not believe that he now has a problem with alcohol. More than 17 years ago he did, once, attend an alcohol treatment program."

Also in the race for president are controversial former president Clem Paul and Frank Lafferty.

Douglas' criminal record was made an issue by the Centre for Northern Families after some NSMA women complained about Douglas' history of violence.

They wanted Douglas to drop out of the race and acting president Bob Turner to resign for throwing his support behind Douglas after he himself withdrew from the election.

Yesterday, the Status of Women Council of the NWT issued a press release stating they support the women who called for Douglas to resign and Turner to step down.

Douglas was also convicted of assault in 1984 and spousal assault in 1997.

His is still on probation for his recent convictions.