Edmonton courtroom allows pipe swearing ceremony

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History was made in an Edmonton Courtroom when two Native witnesses were allowed to take the oath traditionally using the Sacred Pipe.

James Dean Agecoutay and Wayne Bruce received their swearing in from an

Elder prior to giving testimony at a preliminary hearing into murder charges against Phillip Bearshirt and Robert Pelltier. Pelltier and Bearshirt are charged with the August 25, 1986 murder of Richard Roche.

Lawyers for both accused have strongly advocated swearing in ceremonies in the courts. Karen Gainer of Calgary, lawyer for Bearshirt, says at an initial application made in Calgary on December 16, 1986, she received some opposition from the crown prosecutor, but that Queen's Bench Court Justice Sulatycky ruled in favor of Bearshirt having his bundles in the courtroom and testifying under his own religious beliefs oath. But because of complications in getting Bearshirt's spiritual advisor to the hearing, the swearing in never took place.

Gainer says that the use of traditional courts initial ignorance of the significance

of the bundle may come from the fact that they have never encountered a Native who practiced his Native spiritual ways.

Peter Hanington, who represents Pelltier, said that he was singularly impressed with the swearing in of the two witnesses. He says that for so long the courts have relied on Christian oath, or an affirmation, and to finally recognize the need for Native people to be able to speak their truth in their own way is encouraging.

"Taking the oath through the Sacred Pipe is a much more serious matter than taking an oath on the bible and saying I do. I will from now on ask all my Native clients if they would like to take the oath in this way. This is definitely a resurrection of the Native culture."

The Elder who performed the swearing in says that these sort of happenings or a religion, they are a way of life. The Elder adds that it's taken Native prisoners to show the good and honesty in the Native way of life. They've shown that there is good in them. In prison, our people only have the Creator and the Pipe, and to take that away from them is to take away their life.