A trial date for four men charged with conspiracy to commit murder at the Coutts, Alta., border blockade will not be set until July 11 because one of the accused fired his lawyer.
Christopher Lysak, Anthony Olienick, Jerry Morin and Chris Carbert were charged with conspiracy to murder, possession of a weapon and mischief to property over $5,000. Lysak was also charged with uttering threats.
The charges were laid after an RCMP raid early on Feb. 14 near the protest area found a cache of weapons, ammunition and body armour. Lysak, Olienick and Carbert were all denied bail and Morin’s bail hearing is scheduled for June 24.
Lawyer Alias Amelia Sanders asked a Lethbridge court on Monday morning to remove Carbert’s previous lawyer, Balfour Der, as counsel of record. Carbert’s new lawyer Clayton Rice will need time to “get up to speed,” Sanders said.
Sanders also told the court that Lysak has been trying to get a trial date for two months but can’t because of what’s happening with the co-accused. Lysak’s lawyer, Jim Lutz, expressed disappointment in court last month that a trial date has yet to be scheduled.
The Crown previously said it plans to try all four together.
Prosecutor Steve Johnston confirmed that the Crown plans to proceed with direct indictments for all four men, which means there will be no preliminary hearing before trial.
Johnston also said he has received 35 gigabytes of evidence related to the case, which will be shared with the defence.
He said he will work with the defence counsel to set a trial date at the upcoming case management meeting scheduled for later this month.
— with files from Bill Graveland, The Canadian Press.