annbrocklehurst.com a day in court with matthew ward...
TRANSCRIPT
A day in court with Matthew WardJackson and his lawyer, DeepakParadkarPosted on September 13, 2014
It’s Friday September 12th at Toronto’s Old City Hall courthouse. I’ve come to see Matthew WardJackson aka Krucifix14 aka Big Iisho, who currently has three sets of charges pending against
Matthew WardJackson’s head tattoos include a man with a blackedout eye. Wayne Millard was
reportedly shot in the eye.
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AnnBrocklehurst.comJournalist. Private Investigator. Blogger of Interest (in a good sense).
him, including having supplied Dellen Millard with the gun he allegedly used to kill his fatherWayne. That’s the case I’m really interested in but it’s not the one on the dockets today. Thissession is about an earlier drug possession and intenttotraffic case. (WardJackson ispleading not guilty to all three sets of charges against him.)
Things were supposed to get underway at 10 a.m. but, because many judges operate in a paralleltime universe, at 10:30 we were still all sitting around waiting for her honour to arrive. There wasthe accused, Matthew WardJackson; the coaccused; the coaccused’s mother; the two defencelawyers, making (minimum) $300 an hour small talk; the wife and paralegal of one of the defencelawyers; the Crown; the court clerk; the court reporter; me; and the Toronto police constableguarding the prisoner and fixing her wonky chair.
When the door finally opened, we were all expecting the judge, but no, not yet. Instead it was a50something downonhisluck looking guy with long thinning brown hair, a leather HarleyDavidson jacket, torn jeans, and some very well worn cowboy boots.
“Hey MJ,” he said to WardJackson in the prisoner’s box.”How’re you doing? I put some money inthe canteen for you. It’s only 20 bucks.”
“Thanks for coming,” Ward Jackson replied graciously. It was the second occasion I’ve seen him inperson and he’s lost weight over the past two months. He’s also better dressed than he was lasttime, wearing what looks like a brand new Roots Maple Leafs jacket, a blue plaid shirt, dark washjeans and navy sneakertype shoes, all fresh and clean. He has enough hair growth on his shavenhead that I can’t clearly make out the tattoos underneath, including the one I’d really like to see ofthe man with his eye blacked out.
MJ’s buddy sits down next to me while the police constable guarding the prisoner gives him theonce over. “I know you,” she says. “You’re Butch. We went to high school together.”
Butch does a double take. “You’re the boxer,” he says. “You still box?”
Their conversation gets cut short as the judge finally makes her entrance. Apologetically, she tellsus all she’d like to take care of the other case on her agenda, a brief sentencing, before hearingthe further evidence in the WardJackson case. She says it will take half an hour so we all clearout of the courtroom. By now, it’s almost 11.
I ask Butch if he has time to talk. And he tells me I can join him for his smoke break. On thecourthouse steps, he explains that he was WardJackson’s cellmate at the Toronto SouthDetention Center from the Canada Day long weekend until a few days ago when he was released.He was there for violating probation for an assault charge. He’d run into his lawyer in thecourthouse halls earlier and she’d asked him what in hell he was doing here. Just showing supportfor a friend, he had explained much to her relief.
I told Butch I was interested in WardJackson because of the gun trafficking charges related to theMillard case. “Whaaat?” he asked “Who?” I gave him a primer on Tim Bosma, Wayne Millard,
Laura Babcock, etc. Butch only knew the vaguest of outlines. He said that prisoners don’t talk toeach other about stuff like that.
He also emphasized that Matthew was a good guy, not dumb, and not guilty. That’s why he’dcome to court to support him.
“At the very least he did some dumb things,” I suggested.
“Who hasn’t?” said Butch. “That’s why pencils have erasers.”
I kind of liked Butch. If you’ve got to have a cellmate, he seemed like just about the best you couldhave. Putting $20 in the canteen for MJ was a generous move.
We headed back inside and up to the courtroom where I spotted some familiar faces. There was ayoung blonde woman who looked like one of the Gotass Girls from Big Iisho’s various videos. Andthe guy with her was definitely Blanco Oro, a rapper and music producer.
Big Iisho Krucix TorontoRappers.com Interview!
“You’re Blanco Oro, right?” I said as I introduced myself. He looked simultaneously worried anddisappointed. No doubt when he’d imagined people recognizing him from his videos, it was youngfangirls not nosy reporters old enough to be his mother.
Like Butch, Blanco said he knew nothing Millardrelated. He just wanted to see Matthew — who hedescribed as an “up and coming artist” — get back to making music. I gave him my business cardand a high five and sat down to wait for the judge. The sentencing was taking way longer than halfan hour.
Butch was now talking to Blanco who had taken him aside to show him something on his phone. Iassume it was my National Post article on Matthew WardJackson and his ties to the Millard casebecause after that Butch stopped speaking to me. At noon when we eventually filed back in to thecourt room, no one wanted to sit beside me. Given that the kickboxing police woman was now
chatting and joking with WardJackson as she escorted him in and out, I felt it was unjust that Iwas the most feared and unpopular person in the room.
According to the dockets, we were there for a further evidence session, which began with thecrown summing up the evidence against the accused. In a nutshell, some $50,000 worth ofcocaine and $13,000 in in cash had been found in an apartment allegedly occupied by WardJackson and his coaccused, who was his exGF. In my laywoman’s opinion, the crown madesome good points but it was hardly an airtight case.
I was especially puzzled by the crown’s reference to marijuana supposedly found in the apartmentbetween the mattresses.The crown said veteran drug squad officers recognized it as marijuanaand not, for example, oregano, which would have been in the kitchen not the bedroom.
WTF?! I thought. This all seems very vague. Why didn’t they just test it? You don’t need to be CSIto tell oregano from marijuana. As it turned out, this was a subject the defence would later addressalthough not the oregano angle.
WardJackson’s lawyer for these charges is Deepak Paradkar, who is also Dellen Millard’s lawyer,defending him against all three charges of first degree murder. Along with wanting to talk to peoplewho knew WardJackson, Paradkar was the other reason I’d come to court. I wanted to see him inaction.
As the crown wrapped up and we were about to break for lunch, he asked the judge if he couldhave two minutes. One of the points he raised was the marijuana issue. “If these officers are soveteran, why didn’t they seize it and inventory it?” he asked. “I have serious concerns.”
After lunch, both Paradkar and the coaccused’s lawyer made their case for a directed verdict.Paradkar is an impressive and forceful speaker, with a sarcastic streak when it comes to the cops.He was out to show the crown needed more proof his client had lived in the apartment where thecocaine was found. “Where is the lease, cable records, Bell records?” he asked. “Police college101.”
“My friend,” he said, referring to the Crown, “emphasized that these were veteran officers, but thatcan be to their detriment.” Paradkar went on to cite a kidnapping case where 25year veteranshadn’t followed the basic rules of evidence collection or performed what should be standard duediligence.
Amused, at one point, by his turn of phrase, I LOLled, which caused Butch to turn around and giveme the stink eye. I wanted to explain I wasn’t laughing at his friend’s lawyer, I was laughing withhim. But it was too late. I’d lost Butch.
As court wrapped up, WardJackson thanked the judge for everything including her order thathe receive a meal. Is he flirting with her? I wondered. Earlier, he’d called out cheekily to his coaccused as she walked by the prisoner’s box, plus there was all that chitchat with the kickboxingconstable. WardJackson appeared to think — not necessarily incorrectly — that he had a waywith the ladies. Or maybe he was just genuinely grateful to be getting a nonprison meal. Butch
6 THOUGHTS ON “A DAY IN COURT WITH MATTHEW WARDJACKSON AND HIS LAWYER, DEEPAK PARADKAR”
had told me earlier that the food at Toronto South sucked and, as the old joke goes, there wasn’tenough of it.
The judge’s ruling is scheduled to be delivered on October 29 at 10 a.m. Ontario standard judgetime. I promise to let you know what happens.
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Related posts:
1. Matthew WardJackson: Believed to have sold Dellen Millard the gun used to kill hisfather, Wayne Millard
2. Tim Bosma murder trial may be fast tracked3. Dellen Millard in court today on charges he murdered his father
This entry was posted in All MillardRelated News, In Court, Journalist and tagged DeepakParadkar, Matthew WardJackson by AnnB. Bookmark the permalink[http://www.annrbrocklehurst.com/2014/09/adayincourtwithmatthewwardjacksonandhislawyerdeepakparadkar.html] .
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MGon September 13, 2014 at 5:35 pm said:
Ann, this was the first piece of work I’ve really enjoyed of yours – made me laughon several occasions – reads more like a short story than a “court” review – lovedyour interaction with the “spectators”, I mean…you could of just sat there and took
notes but you actually “mingled” and picked up some very funny material – I’verazzed you in the past but this is excellent work. “Quick to complain slow to praise”they say – not I. I think you’re happiest when working oldschool – gumshoe styleJMHO.
AnnBon September 14, 2014 at 9:56 am said:
Aw, thanks. It was a fun piece to write.
Erneston September 13, 2014 at 5:46 pm said:
Best report! Poor Ann, least popular person in the room.
AnnBon September 14, 2014 at 9:57 am said:
Would you have sat beside me, Ernest?
Carol Osborneon September 15, 2014 at 8:41 am said:
I really enjoyed it, I can’t understand why no one would sit by you….lol. You reallyhave a way with words to say nothing of your terrific sense of humour. When theMillard case finally gets underway I know your articles will be nothing less thanbrilliant and hopefully there will be some humour in them as well.
Kellyon September 15, 2014 at 7:49 pm said:
Thank you for writing such an informative yet entertaining article.