Moose Jaw-Wakamow MLA Greg Lawrence will represent himself during his November trial, and because of potential conflicts of interest with the regular judges, a non-local judge will handle the proceedings.
Defence lawyer Estes Fonkalsrud appeared on behalf of the retiring politician in Moose Jaw Provincial Court on Aug. 13, saying Lawrence was prepared to proceed with the planned one-day trial on Monday, Nov. 18 and would be self-represented. Therefore, the court should hold a case management conference (CMC) to narrow down the triable issues.
Lawrence has pleaded not guilty to charges of assault, contrary to section 266 of the Criminal Code, and choking, contrary to section 267 of the Criminal Code.
Fonkalsrud was unsure if a judge from Moose Jaw or outside the community would manage the CMC but noted that Lawrence wasn’t concerned about any conflicts of interest with a local judge overseeing that gathering.
Federal Crown prosecutor Suzanne Young agreed with having a CMC but thought a court-appointed counsel (CAC) would be required for the trial so that person could cross-examine the complainant on Lawrence’s behalf.
“I know Mr. Lawrence’s position … is that he’s going to oppose that (CAC),” Fonkalsrud replied. “It’s a case where he’s indicated that the complainant is an adult and has had numerous contacts with Mr. Lawrence since the alleged offence.
“So, he doesn’t feel it’s a case that he shouldn’t be allowed to run his own trial. But that can be discussed (during) case management.”
Judge Brian Hendrickson agreed that having a case-management conference was important but said he would not hear it since he would feel conflicted. Moreover, since Judge David Chow was also unlikely to oversee the CMC, a relief judge from elsewhere would be required.
Hendrickson then set the case management conference — held for unrepresented accused people — for Tuesday, Aug. 20 at 1:30 p.m.
Meanwhile, Judge Hendrickson said that during the CMC, the Crown and Lawrence would need to discuss the application for court-appointed counsel for cross-examination purposes. However, he didn’t think there was any need to contact the Ministry of Justice’s court services for assistance — nor would it become involved — if the CMC judge ordered a court-appointed counsel for the trial.
According to previous information, the Moose Jaw Police Service charged Lawrence with assault on Jan. 31, after it began an investigation on June 27, 2023, into complaints of assault during an interaction between two people.
Lawrence had announced on Jan. 30 that he was resigning from the Saskatchewan Party caucus after it became known that he was the subject of a police investigation.
Lawrence, who had previously announced he would not seek re-election following a single-vehicle motorcycle collision in August 2023, now sits as an independent Member of the Legislative Assembly for the remainder of the term.
He has been the MLA for the Moose Jaw Wakamow constituency since 2011, winning by 201 votes over NDP incumbent Deb Higgins. Lawrence then won by 695 votes over NDP candidate Karen Purdy during the 2016 election and won by 822 over NDP candidate Melissa Patterson in 2020.
The next provincial election must occur on or before Monday, Oct. 28, according to election rules. In the Wakamow constituency, Sask. Party candidate Megan Patterson will face off against NDP candidate Melissa Patterson; the two are unrelated.
