The failures included a search of the man’s home without a warrant, his handcuffing for an unjustified period of time and untimely information about his right to a lawyer. Lawyer Noel Sinclair suspended the trial – essentially where the Crown chooses to end a lawsuit – against Jonathan Baglee on Thursday. The move came about three months after District Court Judge Karen Ruddy, at Baglee’s request, ruled that RCMP officers had overreacted to the situation and that any evidence collected during the search warrant, including firearms, cocaine and verbal statements could not be used in court. Baglee was arrested on July 30, 2019 after RCMP officers assisted in a nationwide search for two teenagers wanted for a murder spree in northern BC. they heard the sound of gunfire from afar. According to Randy’s decision, the BC RCMP had received information that the teens had been seen at a rest stop on the freeway near Jake’s Corner, about 80 miles southeast of Whitehorse. Yukon RCMP Const. Joseph Miller and Cpl. Cameron Long was in control of the area when they heard three gunshots, followed by five to six others, and decided to investigate. Officers followed the sound at Baglee’s house, about three kilometers below the Alaska highway, where they observed bullets on the ground. Baglee’s partner and then Baglee left the house and told police he fired a 0.22 caliber rifle, which police said they did not believe based on the calibers. During the interaction, Baglee’s partner said she may also have fired a .308 caliber rifle and that there was a shotgun in the house. Baglee also admitted that he was in court at the time when he was banned from possessing firearms. Police arrested and handcuffed Bagley and Long decided to “clean the house”, entering Bagley’s house without a warrant and making a “regular crossing”, according to Randy. Baglee also admitted to having cocaine in his garage, which police searched again without a warrant. Police later received a search warrant for Baglee’s property, but not before finding three firearms. They found six additional firearms, along with firearm accessories and drug paraphernalia, during the search.
Irrelevant manhunt influenced the reaction of the police
Randy, in her decision, found that Long and Miller were unjustifiably affected by the manhunt across the country. He said the couple allowed the irrelevant search of the teens to affect their approach to a trivial situation – the sound of gunfire in rural Yukon near the hunting season.
While there are situations in which police officers may be justified in entering a home without a warrant – answering a 911 call or where there is evidence of someone in immediate danger, for example – Bagley’s case was not one of them, he said. Randy.
Randy also ruled that there was no reason to keep Bagley in custody for more than a few minutes, noting that he was cooperative, did not pose an immediate threat and, apart from the initial deceit about the 0.22 rifle, was “honestly in error. . “However, he was detained for more than an hour, during which time police questioned him and did not inform him of his right to seek legal advice until he was transferred to Whitehorse.
Randy also noted that Long and Miller were “defensive” or “unresponsive” when pressed to testify about the sound of gunfire and the approach when hearing the request for the Bagley Charter. in research. Long, for example, insisted the second round of gunfire he heard must have come from an illegal firearm, although he was unsure of the actual number of shots fired, while Miller said he was afraid he would be first in line as he drove up. Bagley’s house, despite evidence that he was about to be shot.
Their testimony also differed from each other – Long testified that he and Miller wore armor while still standing, for example, while Miller said he had no armor that day.
Randy found that Miller and Long’s actions violated the rights of Bagley Charter 8, 9 and 10 (b) – the right to unreasonable search, the right to arbitrary detention and the right to receive legal advice.
The violations were “neither temporary nor insignificant,” Randy continued, but a “profound failure” to comply with Charter rules. The unwarranted search saw police passing through every room in Bagley’s home, and the drugs and weapons found were critical to the Crown case.
“A very long and arduous process”
Baglee’s lawyer, Vincent Larochelle, said in an interview after the Crown suspended the charges against Baglee that his client was “certainly very happy; the whole ordeal has come to an end”. “It was obviously a very long and arduous process for him,” Larochelle said. He added that Randy’s decision and the stay of the accusations by the Crown, justify not only the rights of Bagli, but the rights of “Yukoners in general”. “It seems quite common in the Yukon for police officers to conduct unlicensed searches of either homes, individuals or their vehicles,” Larochelle said. “What we need to understand is that only when the police violate the Charter and find something illegal does they go to court … (Judges) do not miss the moments when the police violate the rights of the Charter of the People and nothing happens and no charges are imposed “. About 90 items seized by police from Baglee’s home, including various firearms, ammunition, cash and dummy grenades, will be returned to him, while 18 items, including a Beretta 92 pistol, 0.9mm pistol and cocaine, will be returned. confiscated.
