JUDGE RESERVES RULING ON BID TO THROW OUT DRUG CASE

Court Lawyer For Marrtown Man Contends Police Did Not Obtain Search
Warrant Properly

SUSSEX - The lawyer for a man charged with possession of cocaine and
marijuana for the purposes of trafficking is hoping to have the case
thrown out after arguing the search warrant to enter his home was
obtained improperly.

In May 2008 officers from the Hampton and Sussex RCMP went to the home
of Arden William Gregg in Marrtown with a warrant signed by a Saint
John judge.

Following the search, charges for possession were laid against Gregg,
as well as charges of unsafe storage of firearms, possession of 49
weapons without proper licences and possession of untaxed tobacco.

But on Friday, Gregg's lawyer, Randy Maillet of Fredericton, argued
the information to obtain the warrant, which was presented to the
judge for his signature, did not meet the standards expected in
Canadian law.

"I haven't made a decision one way or the other, but there are some
issues to look at here," provincial court Judge Henrik Tonning said at
the end of the hearing.

The judge said he will accept further written arguments from federal
prosecutor Gerald McCracken and Maillet before he issues a decision on
April 3 at 9:30 a.m.

The RCMP relied on information from four confidential informants, two
of whom said Gregg was selling drugs from his home as well as from the
Sports Bar on Main Street in Sussex.

Maillet argued that police have a duty to corroborate that evidence
with some surveillance work of their own, such as watching Gregg's
home on a Friday night to look for traffic patterns, or to see what
happens when he is at the bar.

Const. Stephen Simon of the Hampton RCMP testified Friday at the
hearing into the validity of the warrant. He said Gregg's home in the
country was too exposed for surveillance of that sort. He also
confirmed no one made any observations at the bar, either inside or
from the parking lot.

The search warrant also contained approval from the judge for police
to enter Gregg's home without knocking or announcing who they were.

Simon said that was a standard clause inserted in search warrants
where smaller items, such as drugs could possibly be flushed away.

Maillet said the law requires police to present some evidence to the
judge signing the warrant justifying why they should enter
unannounced, but it was not done in this case.

Police did not actually use that section of the search warrant when
they went to Gregg's home nearly a year ago, Simon said.

A plain-clothes officer knocked on the door and Gregg came out before
the search warrant was presented to him and the other officers appeared.