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Manslaughter appeal adjourned until later date

Paul Bickford
Northern News Services

Yellowknife (Feb 07/05) - The NWT Court of Appeal wants to know why a Hay River man was improperly questioned during his trial for manslaughter.

A mid-January appeal of Pavel Bruha's 2003 conviction was adjourned to a later date when the panel of three NWT Court of Appeal judges in Yellowknife requested more information. They want to know why the 53-year-old Bruha was questioned at his trial about his criminal record, which included five pardoned offences.

"The full court requested further evidence to be filed by both sides," said Bruha's lawyer Hugh Latimer. He said the cross-examination questions by the Crown during the trial baffled everyone.

"The Crown and the defence are conducting investigations to try to solve that mystery," Latimer says, explaining it will involve finding and following the paper trail.

Crown attorney Louise Charbonneau says both sides will submit written submissions to the court. She said the next sitting of the Court of Appeal will be in June.

Bruha was sentenced to five years imprisonment for his involvement in the Jan. 17, 2002 beating death of 50-year-old Yves (Frenchie) Lebel.

Latimer says neither he nor his client were aware of the pardons at the time of the trial.

The lawyer says Bruha's defense was hurt by questioning about his record before the jury.

Loretta Colton, the Crown attorney at the trial, revealed the error to the judge and apologized.

Latimer filed for a mistrial, but it was rejected by Justice John Vertes, who did not believe the criminal record affected the jury's decision.

According to Latimer, the five pardoned offences involved assault, theft, a weapons charge and impaired driving.

Another man, Craig Stromberg, had earlier pleaded guilty to manslaughter in connection with Lebel's death and was sentenced to four years.

Stromberg and Bruha were convicted of attacking Lebel in his room at the Cedar Rest Motel because of suspicions that the victim was having an affair with Bruha's wife.

At his trial, Bruha denied involvement in Lebel's death. He was released on bail in November pending the appeal.