Russell Williams charged in 2 x murders, confinement, sexual assault.

[GAP]

There's also this.....
Lawyers expect change of venue for Williams trial
Updated 9 hours ago W. BRICE MCVICAR The Intelligencer
Article Link

It's a good bet lawyers will seek a change of venue for the trial of Col. Russell Williams, say defence lawyers in Belleville and Ottawa.

Belleville criminal defence lawyer Ed Kafka said while he believes a "decent jury" could be found for the Williams case, a change of venue would likely improve the chances of finding one. He said media coverage and community involvement in the search for 27-year-old Jessica Lloyd may have altered the opportunity for a fair jury trial locally but, outside the region, it is still obtainable.

"I think you can get a decent jury, but probably not in Hastings County at this point," Kafka said. "I think there would probably be a change of venue application to another jurisdiction simply because of the media attention and the local interest."

Kafka's comments come on the heels of an article in the legal periodical, Law Times, in which Mark Ertel, past president of the Defence Counsel Association of Ottawa, said the national media coverage of the arrest of Williams and details released through the coverage of his arrest could greatly impact Williams' chances of a fair trial by jury. Ertel said media reports indicating Williams gave a lengthy confession to investigating officers mean many people have already convicted the former CFB Trenton commander of the two first degree murder charges he is facing in connection to the homicides of Lloyd and Cpl. Marie France Comeau.

Williams is also facing two charges of sexual assault in relation to home invasions in Tweed.

"If it was up to me, newspapers wouldn't be able to report this sort of stuff before people had their trials and then there'd be a real presumption of innocence," Ertel said when reached in Ottawa for an interview. "As long as we believe that freedom of the press is a more important principle than the presumption of innocence, this is going to happen in sensational cases and that's what's happened here."
More on link

 

[Retired AF Guy]

There's also this.....
Lawyers expect change of venue for Williams trial
Updated 9 hours ago W. BRICE MCVICAR The Intelligencer
Article Link

........ Mark Ertel, past president of the Defence Counsel Association of Ottawa, said the national media coverage of the arrest of Williams and details released through the coverage of his arrest could greatly impact Williams' chances of a fair trial by jury. Ertel said media reports indicating Williams gave a lengthy confession to investigating officers mean many people have already convicted the former CFB Trenton commander of the two first degree murder charges he is facing in connection to the homicides of Lloyd and Cpl. Marie France Comeau.

...........

"If it was up to me, newspapers wouldn't be able to report this sort of stuff before people had their trials and then there'd be a real presumption of innocence," Ertel said when reached in Ottawa for an interview. "As long as we believe that freedom of the press is a more important principle than the presumption of innocence, this is going to happen in sensational cases and that's what's happened here." 

This is not the first time I've seen comments like this coming from members of the legal community. It appears that Mr. Ertel and others like him, think that jury members are unable to change their minds if presented with evidence that contradicts what they have heard in the media. Unfortunately, because its illegal to discuss jury proceedings, its hard to know if his concerns are valid or not.

 

[The Bread Guy]

This from the Canadian Press:

The former commander of CFB Trenton will make another court appearance today in Belleville, Ont., via video link.

Col. Russell Williams faces first-degree murder charges in the deaths of two women, and charges in sex assaults against other women. Williams is accused of killing Cpl. Marie-France Comeau of Brighton, Ont., and Jessica Lloyd of Belleville ....

 

[40below]

Oh puh-leeze. Putting aside the irony of someone named Kafka speaking out  against openness in criminal proceedings, even if a word of this had never made the press, every single pers in Trenton would already know as much as they already do, and the rumour mill would have reached nearly everyone else. Defence lawyers file change-of-venue apps as a matter of course, but the hurdles to proving a jury pool is irreperably tainted are daunting and they are hardly ever granted. If the argument Kafka et al could be believed, then every single high-profile case would have to be moved to another jurisdiction owing to such publicity, and they aren't.

Potential jurors are not asked if they have knowledge of the the case, they are asked if they have formed an opinion on the guilt or innocence of the accused, or have personal biases that would influence their judgement. They're also instructed to form their verdict solely on what they hear in the court, not what they have read in the paper or what their Aunt Sally told them that she had heard from her hairdresser who knows the brother of the accused's neighbour who says the guy definitely did it. Knowledge of a case now will not make it impossible to find 12 people with no opinion on the case two years from now when (and if) Williams goes on trial.

 

[old medic]

Colonel Williams makes court appearance
Timothy Appleby and Colin Freeze
http://www.theglobeandmail.com/news/national/colonel-williams-makes-court-appearance/article1511577/

Clad in orange prison garb and appearing downcast, the Canadian air force colonel accused of committing a horrifying string of murders and sex attacks appeared briefly in court here by videolink and had his case put over for another month.

His military buzz cut grown out into a shaggy widow's peak, Colonel Russell Williams was the first inmate from the Quinte Detention Centre in Napanee to appear, on what was a crowded court docket.

The former commander of 8 Wing/CFB Trenton spoke just twice, when asked if he understood the proceedings.

“Yes, thank you,” he replied

His case was put over to April 29 to allow his lawyer, Michael Edelson to digest what was described in court as a “substantial” disclosure package. ........................  continues at link above.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Col. Williams on suicide watch in jail

By ROB TRIPP, QMI Agency

Last Updated: April 4, 2010 7:46pm


KINGSTON, Ont - Col. Russell Williams made an elaborate and desperate bid to kill himself over the Easter weekend, QMI Agency has learned.

Sources at the Quinte Dentention Centre in Napanee tell QMI that at roughly 5 a.m. Saturday, the accused serial sex killer wrote a suicide note in mustard on the wall of his segregation cell.

The condiment note was a farewell message saying his affairs are now in order and his feelings are too much to bear.

Aware that he was being closely watched, Williams, 47, jammed the lock in his cell door with cardboard and foil in an attempt to prevent staff from getting into his cell quickly and stopping him, sources said.

Using a cardboard toilet roll stuffed with more foil and cardboard, Williams stuffed it down his throat in an apparent bid to suffocate himself, sources said.

Staff were able to bust into the cell and rescue Williams.

The incident has raised staff fears that Williams won’t survive until his next court appearance on April 29.

He is now on 24-hour, one-on-one suicide watch inside the jail, sources said.

It appears Williams had rehearsed his attempt the day before.

On Friday, sources said Williams jammed a pencil into the lock of his cell door to test how long it would take staff to unjam it. Maintenance staff arrived and opened the door within 15 minutes.

Williams bizarre jailhouse behaviour has been noted before.

When he first entered the provincial facility, immediately after his arrest, Williams acted as though he was a prisoner of war, only giving authorities his name, rank and serial number.

At that time, Williams was assessed by a psychiatrist and deemed a possible suicide risk. His demeanor has been described as “cocky” but “vacant.” He was given a tear- and burn-proof outfit, known among jail workers as an “oven mitt” or “baby doll,” to wear.

Williams, the former base commander at CFB Trenton, is accused of killing Jessica Lloyd, 27, of Belleville and Cpl. Marie-France Comeau, 37, of Brighton. Comeau worked at CFB Trenton.

Williams is also accused of two home invasion-sex assaults on two women in the Tweed area in September 2009.

Reached by phone Sunday, Williams’ lawyer Michael Edelson said he had “no comment” on reports that Williams had attempted suicide.

Laura Blondeau, a spokesman for Community Safety and Correction Services Minister Rick Bartolucci, said she couldn’t comment on the status of any individuals inside a provincial facility.

Blondeau added that she couldn’t say, for security reasons, where any particular inmate was being housed.

- With files from QMI Agency

Copyright © 2010 Toronto Sun All Rights Reserved

 

[SeanNewman]

Wow...just....wow.

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

Just another day for those who toil in our detention centres...........only makes the news because it's a "somebody".

 

[the 48th regulator]

Just another day for those who toil in our detention centres...........only makes the news because it's a "somebody".

I hear you.

It's the modern day fascination with the "Celebrity Criminal" and this one has it all.  Upstanding Citizen, Military Fly Jockey Colonel, Serial killer, Childhood friend of another serial Killer......

dileas

tess

 

[SeanNewman]

I don't really think this is the same though than a celebrity criminal (worse and more shocking).

If people see Brad Pitt going to jail or Michael Jackson dying, it's big news but just for entertainment value; those people don't really have a say in anyone's life.

But for someone like a high-ranking military (or police for that matter) or a judge or politician to go through this sort of thing I really do see it as more significant.

Not because one life (especially an alleged killer's) is worth anymore than someone else's, but it does make it all the more involving, especially for the Trenton folk I'm sure.

Your point is a good one though that in terms of the actual events (murders, criminals trying to commit suicide in custody, etc) being quite common but never heard about because people have the notion that they're just wastes of taxpayer money anyway.  If nothing else it might shine a light on these sorts of things happening for people who otherwise wouldn't care (?)

 

[the 48th regulator]

I don't really think this is the same though than a celebrity criminal (worse and more shocking).

If people see Brad Pitt going to jail or Michael Jackson dying, it's big news but just for entertainment value; those people don't really have a say in anyone's life.

But for someone like a high-ranking military (or police for that matter) or a judge or politician to go through this sort of thing I really do see it as more significant.

Not because one life (especially an alleged killer's) is worth anymore than someone else's, but it does make it all the more involving, especially for the Trenton folk I'm sure.

Your point is a good one though that in terms of the actual events (murders, criminals trying to commit suicide in custody, etc) being quite common but never heard about because people have the notion that they're just wastes of taxpayer money anyway.  If nothing else it might shine a light on these sorts of things happening for people who otherwise wouldn't care (?)

Clarify,

Celebrity, in that we celebrate the criminal as a celebrity....

I can guarantee, any person can name five serial killers, faster than they can name off 5 famous Academy award winners.

Humans for centuries have venerated criminals.  Romans had gladiators, Western Dime store comics about Outlaws, etc...etc...

That was what I was alluding too, but you make a dandy point.

dileas

tess

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

I don't want to change the topic but I just want to give an example of what Tess is saying......


Hockey coach in sex abuse case pardoned
Parole board's action in Graham James case comes amid new allegation of abuse
http://www.thestar.com/news/canada/article/790202--hockey-coach-in-sex-abuse-case-pardoned?bn=1

Now in the last 21 years I have seen lots of garbage far worse than this clown walk away from their sentence simply because they spun a good enough yarn in front of 3 folks who are nothing but political hackbags.......

They didn't seem to make the news, nor did the Prime Minister want an explanation. :

 

[the 48th regulator]

Source: Williams tricked staff into believing he was stable

By ROB TRIPP, QMI Agency

Accused killer Russ Williams was able to make an elaborate suicide attempt in jail because he tricked staff into believing that his mental state had stabilized, sources have told QMI Agency. LUKE HENDRY/QMI Agency

KINGSTON, Ont. - Accused killer Russ Williams was able to make an elaborate suicide attempt in jail because he tricked staff into believing that his mental state had stabilized, sources have told QMI Agency.

Williams, 47, the former commander of Canadian Forces Base Trenton, was taken off strict suicide watch at Quinte Detention Centre in Napanee in recent weeks because his behaviour seemed rational and compliant.

He was speaking reservedly to some staff, and he was being polite and respectful. He was often seen reading in his cell.

Because of his conduct, Williams was permitted to wear regular clothes, receive standard meals and was not being watched by security staff around-the-clock.

Authorities now believe he spent considerable time plotting to kill himself.

Early Saturday morning of the Easter weekend, he jammed cardboard and foil-like drink powder packaging into the lock mechanism of his cell door, then pushed a toilet tissue tube filled with more cardboard and foil down his throat in an apparent bid to choke himself to death, QMI learned.


He wrote a suicide note on the wall of his cell in mustard squeezed from packets provided with meals.

Staff were able to quickly open the cell door and rescue Williams before he had seriously injured himself.

Extraordinary security measures have now been imposed and are likely to remain in place for the duration of his stay at Quinte.

Williams is shackled in leg irons and handcuffs every time he leaves his cell, even for showers. He has been stripped of his regular clothing and forced to wear a smock-like anti-suicide gown made from a quilted fabric that cannot be burned, torn or twisted.

The wearer cannot tear off pieces to fashion a noose.

He also is subject to constant surveillance by a staffer posted directly outside his segregation unit cell, where he is housed next to Dean Brown, the 18-year-old man charged with shooting a Belleville area woman and her 14-year-old daughter to death last month.

Sources at Quinte say Williams, who is still receiving regular visits from his wife each week, is now considered a dangerous, conniving prisoner whose conduct is unpredictable.

When he is taken to the jail¹s visiting unit, movement of all other prisoners at Quinte is halted.

Williams is being strip searched daily and his cell is searched each day. He has virtually no contact with other inmates, except those he can see and hear in the segregation unit.

Hamed Shafia, a 19-year-old Montreal man accused of murdering four family members in a purported honour killing in Kingston last year, is housed in the cell directly across from Williams. Shafia¹s two co-accused, his mother and father, are housed in other sections of the jail.

There has been other unusual conduct from Williams since his arrest in early February.

He has been writing in a diary in what appears to be code. The writings are seen by staff who search his cell. The code appears between sentences he writes about the mundane affairs of daily life in a jail.

The suicide message he left noted that his affairs were now in order and that his feelings were too much to bear.

When Williams first arrived at the cramped Napanee facility, he behaved as if he were a prisoner of war, refusing to provide anything except name, rank and serial number.

Despite the extreme precautions that have been taken, authorities remain concerned that Williams, who is extremely intelligent and resourceful, will find other means to try to end his life.

Inmates have attempted suicide by standing on the stainless steel sink in their cells and diving headfirst onto the floor of a cell.

Inmates also have been known to bang their heads on the sink or stainless steel toilet in a bid to injure or kill themselves.

Michael Edelson, the Ottawa lawyer representing Williams, will not answer questions about the suicide attempt or the latest precautions.

“I’m not making any comment about the case,” he told QMI Agency on Monday.

Williams is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of air force flight attendant Cpl. Marie-France Comeau, 37, and Jessica Lloyd, 27, of Belleville.

He also is charged with home-invasion sex attacks on two women in the Tweed area in September 2009.

rtripp@thewhig.com

Copyright © 2010, Canoe Inc. All rights reserved.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Former military commander accused of murders on hunger strike: report

Canwest News Service 

NAPANEE,Ont. -- Col. Russell Williams, the former base commander accused of murdering two women and sexually assaulting two more, has gone on a hunger strike in his eastern Ontario jail cell, according to local reports.

The Kingston Whig-Standard reported that Williams, who also attempted suicide Saturday morning at the Quinte Detention Centre, stopped eating on Tuesday morning.

Williams, 47, is charged with first-degree murder in the deaths of Jessica Lloyd, of Belleville, Ont., and Cpl. Marie-France Comeau of Brighton, Ont. He is also facing sexual assault charges in relation to two home invasions in the Tweed, Ont., area in September 2009.

Williams had been the commander at CanadianForces Base Trenton until he was arrested in February.

Over the Easter weekend, Williams reportedly attempted suicide by stuffing cardboard from a toilet paper roll down his throat.

He is next scheduled to appear in court April 29.

Canwest News Service

© 2010 The National Post Company. All rights reserved. Unauthorized distribution, transmission or republication strictly prohibited.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Accused colonel on hunger strike, off suicide watch: report 

By Citizen staff , The Ottawa CitizenApril 8, 2010 6:58 AM 


Ottawa — Accused killer Col. Russell Williams was taken off 24-hour suicide watch as a cost-saving measure just days after he made an attempt on his own life and began a hunger strike, a former jail employee suggested in a Kingston newspaper Wednesday.

Lee Currie, a former employee of the Napanee jail where Williams is being held, told the Kingston Whig-Standard that around-the-clock monitoring is “costly.”


The financial restraint of Quinte Detention Centre management was a frequent source of irritation for staff when Currie was union vice-president, he said. Though he left the jail four years ago, Currie said he is still in contact with Quinte staff.


Williams, the former base commander of CFB Trenton, is charged with first-degree murder in connection with the deaths of Cpl. Marie-France Comeau, 37, of Brighton, Ont. and 27-year-old Belleville-native Jessica Lloyd. He also faces sexual assault charges relating to two September home invasions in the Tweed area.


Earlier this week, the Whig-Standard reported that Williams had tried to kill himself by wedging pieces of toilet paper roll in his throat at about 5 a.m. Saturday.


He had used mustard to write a suicide note on the wall of his cell, stating his affairs were in order and that his feelings were too much to bear, unnamed sources told the Whig-Standard.


Williams had rehearsed the excercise Friday, the paper reported, jamming the lock of his cell with a pencil, which held for 15 minutes.


On Saturday morning, staff were able to force their way into Williams' cell even after he reportedly jammed his cell door with cardboard and foil.


Since restrictions were reportedly eased Tuesday, Williams has been permitted to wear normal clothing during the day instead of an anti-suicide gown — an armless smock made from material that cannot be torn or burned. He must still wear the gown overnight, the paper said.


Michael Edelson, Williams lawyer, would neither confirm nor deny any of the events reported in the Whig-Standard when reached at his home Wednesday evening.


Quinte jail officials deferred comment to Ontario’s Ministry of Community Safety and Correctional Services. A spokesman there also declined to comment on Williams’ situation Wednesday night.



© Copyright (c) The Ottawa Citizen

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

It is VERY expensive to keep one on one round the clock.  Lets see, 24 times $45 [ot] plus shift premiums and relief staff on top of the normal cost factor of segregation.

..and the goal of suicide watch is to bring the prisoner around to a state where he/she no longer feels that urge, and slowly returning to "normal" clothes is one factor.


Once again, this is nothing even slightly abnormal behavior-wise to those good folks working in our  DC's.

 

[the 48th regulator]

Bruce,

Thank you for that.  I am only preaching to the choir when I say this, but people have to understand, there are a prison full of other perps that you must watch.

If Williams is determined to do it, short of putting him in a coma, he will do it.  The safety of the Staff, and other prisoners, and the elimination of further criminal activity is a priority, not give this man an audience.

dileas

tess

 

[captloadie]

How does an editor allow this article to get published as news? Other than the one liner and the title, nothiing talks about the hunger strike. And a guy who left 4 years ago is a source that he has been taken off suicide watch, which by the way, has nothing to do with a hunger strike. At least they could imply that he is trying to commit suicide by not eating instead of using a violent means that will only get him closely watched again.

Slow news Day? Bad editor? Worse reporter?

 

[Bruce Monkhouse]

...and don't forget, there is a very good chance this is all cold calculated maneuvering between him and his lawyer to go for the [1] sympathy, [2] remorseful, [3] not criminally responsible, [4] other plans, at the trial/sentencing  that media attention can only heighten.

I think we can all agree that he didn't get to the position he held by being caught unprepared......

 

[zipperhead_cop]

What a time wasting, attention seeking donkey    IMO, Williams is just trying to create a defense of diminished capacity by trying to act like he is crazy.  Just more manipulative BS. 

If people see Brad Pitt going to jail or Michael Jackson dying, it's big news but just for entertainment value; those people don't really have a say in anyone's life.

And Williams doesn't have any say in anyones life either.  He is a prisoner. 

But for someone like a high-ranking military (or police for that matter) or a judge or politician to go through this sort of thing I really do see it as more significant.
Not because one life (especially an alleged killer's) is worth anymore than someone else's, but it does make it all the more involving, especially for the Trenton folk I'm sure.

So how is it that what you said doesn't qualify Williams as something of a celebrity?  That term can have negative connotations too. 

Your point is a good one though that in terms of the actual events (murders, criminals trying to commit suicide in custody, etc) being quite common but never heard about because people have the notion that they're just wastes of taxpayer money anyway.  If nothing else it might shine a light on these sorts of things happening for people who otherwise wouldn't care (?)

Sorry, why should anyone care?  In my experience, the attempts are invariably BS and are just meant to garner attention and/or get a free trip to the hospital to relieve boredom/facilitate an escape.  I will defer to Bruce and his experience as to the percentile of legitmate attempts vs. fake. 

And if you feel the need to launch into a prisoner rights advocacy tangent, please start a new thread.  This is a decent discussion and doesn't need to be locked.