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Theft ring case may tie up courts for months...
Judge Castor Williams could face a scheduling nightmare today.
The Halifax provincial court judge, who oversees an overflow court for cases requiring more than three days, may be asked to set aside six months for a preliminary hearing for more than a dozen Halifax-area residents facing hundreds of charges stemming from a police bust of an alleged theft ring last year.
A Pandora’s box was opened Thursday when lawyers for all of the accused, except one, elected trials in provincial court, for which a preliminary hearing is not required.
But the lawyer for James Demtre Georgantas, an owner of the Chebucto Inn on Lady Hammond Road, requested trial by judge alone in Nova Scotia Supreme Court.
Under the Criminal Code, if any one of a number of co-defendants elects trial in Supreme Court, then all must tried in the same court.
"The highest election governs and if they (defence lawyers) can’t all agree and someone has not elected Supreme Court judge and jury, then it is deemed their election is Supreme Court judge and jury," Crown attorney Mark Scott said Thursday.
In that event, all are subject to a preliminary hearing in provincial court to determine whether there is sufficient evidence for the case to move on to the higher court.
"A six-month preliminary is what we’re anticipating," the prosecutor said. "It’s definitely going to be a resource issue."
The accused in the alleged theft ring face 323 charges, mostly involving theft and possessing stolen property, but Mr. Scott didn’t rule out more charges as the investigation continues.
The probe, dubbed Operation Take Back, started in April 2006 after Halifax Regional Police and the RCMP recovered almost everything from a $140,000 heist of electronic products at a Wacky’s Audiotronics storage facility the month before.
The eight-month probe turned into the biggest investigation of its kind in Halifax. The probe consumed 29,000 man-hours of work and cost $1.1 million, police said.
Police had already recovered about $1.5 million worth of stolen goods prior to the operation’s sweep of suspects who, beside Mr. Georgantas, include Arch Adams, an owner of the Vacuum Hut at The Village at Bayers Road; Peter Adams, owner of the Corner Pocket Pool Club on Dutch Village Road; and James Arthur Goyetche, who worked as a truck driver with Halifax Regional Municipality.
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