STONY PLAIN – A judge on Thursday refused to allow Shawn Hennessey and Dennis Cheeseman to speak and ask questions at a fatality inquiry next January into the 2005 killings of four Mounties near Mayerthorpe.
Hennessey’s father Barry appeared on behalf of the two men at Thursday’s pre-inquiry conference.
Barry Hennessey told assistant chief Judge D.R. Pahl the men have “information that could be very valuable to the inquiry.”
Pahl disagreed, stating that any information they could provide goes beyond the focus of the inquiry, which is to examine the causes of the Mounties’ deaths and determine what can be done to prevent similar deaths in the future.
Pahl said Hennessey and Cheeseman were not present at James Roszko’s farm, the scene of the killings, and had no “direct involvement” in the Mounties’ deaths, beyond helping “Mr. Roszko get back to the scene.”
The two men signed an agreed statement of facts when they pleaded guilty to manslaughter, and Pahl said that document would be enough for the inquiry. Hennessey and Cheeseman are appealing their respective 15- and 12-year sentences.
RCMP constables Peter Schiemann, Brock Myrol, Leo Johnston and Anthony Gordon were shot to death by Roszko on property near Mayerthorpe on March 3, 2005.
The families of all four slain officers were present at Thursday’s conference, where they were instructed that they had standing at the upcoming hearing and could indeed address witnesses.
“We’re allowed to ask questions and neither Keith nor I are shy,” Brock Myrol’s mother Colleen said outside the courtroom. She said they don’t anticipate bringing a lawyer to the hearing. “We’ll ask questions ourselves.”
The inquiry is slated to begin Jan. 10, 2011, in Stony Plain and is expected to last 10 days.
bgelinas@thejournal.canwest.com
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