Lonefighters' trial judge rebuked

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The Canadian Judicial Council has reproached the judge who presided over the 1991 trial of Native activist Milton Born With A Tooth.

Three members of the council's judicial conduct committee concluded that Justice Laurie MacLean did not conduct himself appropriately in the trial that saw Born With A Tooth sentenced to 18 months in jail on six weapons charges.

Born With A tooth, leader of a group of Peigan Indians known as the Lonefighters' Society, was charged after shots were fired at RCMP officers at a protest at the Oldman River dam project in September, 1990.

The Alberta Court of Appeal later overturned MacLean's ruling, however, and ordered a new trial. The new date has yet to be set.

The council's review came in the wake of complaints filed by the Canadian Alliance in Solidarity with the Native Peoples over MacLean's behavior during the trial.

A letter to the Lethbridge-based organization dated April 6 confirmed the panel's findings that "Mr. Justice MacLean had displayed an insensitivity to cultural and religious differences."

The panel also concluded that MacLean "displayed discourtesy to defense council, characterized evidence with unnecessarily colorful and meaningless epitaphs and, generally, did not conduct himself in an appropriate manner for a trial involving sensitive and cultural issues."

The Ottawa-based council decided that the incident was not serious enough to warrant a formal investigation, which would have involved all 35 council members, executive director Jeannie Thomas said.

The three justices who discussed MacLean's case met by means of a telephone conference call in late March, she said. Their decision was released a few days later.

MacLean was not available for comment, but he has admitted, in response to the alliance's complaint, that he made mistakes during the trial.

MacLean also told the council that he has since attended a seminar and workshops on cultural differences.