Trial of former Hamilton paramedics charged in death of Yosif Al-Hasnawi to resume after break

The trial of two former Hamilton paramedics is expected to resume on Tuesday morning after Day 21 was used to review submissions and prepare a move to a virtual courtroom for the remainder of the case.

Both Steve Snively of Hamilton and Christopher Marchant of Whitby made in-person appearances in a downtown Hamilton courtroom on Monday. The pair are charged with failing to provide the necessities of life after the fatal shooting of Yosif Al-Hasnawi in 2017.

The Crown will continue its case following a break for Christmas and the new year. So far, testimony has come from witnesses, public servants, and medical experts connected to the incident in Central Hamilton.

Snively and Marchant were charged in 2018 after the death of Al-Hasnawi outside a Hamilton mosque on Sanford Avenue and Main Street East on Dec. 2, 2017.

The victim was shot while trying to help an older man who was being accosted by two other men, according to multiple police reports.

Documents revealed a police officer requested an ambulance after reporting a “man down,” with the officer allegedly telling dispatchers a “BB gun” was possibly involved and that the victim had “minor injuries superficial to the abdomen.”

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A number of witnesses told investigators that the responding paramedics accused Al-Hasnawi of exaggerating the extent of his injuries, alleging they took too long to treat him and take him to hospital.

In a post-mortem examination, a forensics pathologist concluded Al-Hasnawi’s cause of death was “a penetrating gunshot wound of the abdomen complicated by massive blood loss.”

Both Snively and Marchant were arrested and charged in Aug. 2018.

The trial, which began on Nov. 24, will be decided by Justice Harrison Arrell.

Day 21 was the last in-person session of the trial which is now expected to continue online due to issues related to the pandemic and case scheduling among legal teams.