ILLEGAL VEHICLE SEARCH LEADS TO ACQUITTAL

Judge Rules 155 Pounds Of Marijuana Inadmissible

A Newfoundland man has been acquitted of possessing drugs for the
purpose of trafficking, despite being caught with $1.4 million worth
of marijuana.

Moncton provincial court Judge Joseph Michaud delivered his verdict
in the court case yesterday morning and ruled the police officer who
found the marijuana violated Jamie Colbert's rights by detaining him
without just cause. The judge said the Mountie who stopped Colbert
detained him and questioned him based on nothing more than a hunch
that the motorist was carrying drugs in his SUV.

Michaud said even though the officer's hunch turned out to be
correct, that didn't give him the right to search the vehicle.

"A hunch based on intuition is not good enough to detain, no matter
how accurate (it turns out to be)," said Michaud, while delivering his verdict.

The traffic stop in question occurred March 26, 2008 on Highway 2 in
Salisbury. Const. Stephane Raymond of J Division RCMP's Roving
Traffic Unit spotted a Toyota 4-Runner with a burned out tail light
and stopped the SUV.

After asking the driver a series of questions, Raymond became
suspicious and brought his drug-sniffing dog Jasper over to the
vehicle. The dog smelled the truck and sat down, to indicate the
presence of drugs.

When they opened the back, they found two massive hockey goalie
equipment bags, stuffed to the brim with 155 pounds (70 kilograms) of
marijuana vacuum-sealed in plastic bags.

Colbert, 39, of Mobile, Newfoundland, was charged with possession of
marijuana for the purpose of trafficking. He was released after
paying a $6,000 cash bond and agreeing to several conditions.

During the recent trial, defence lawyer Gary Miller argued his client
was illegally detained and the vehicle was illegally searched. Crown
prosecutor Melanie Ferron argued Colbert was not detained and
consented to the search.

The issue of police searches during traffic stops has been a live one
in Moncton courts over the last couple of years. Several cases
similar to this one have appeared before different judges with
varying results. The cases often have common features, including
Raymond as the investigating officer.

In one 2008 case, Judge Pierre Arseneault ruled the marijuana could
not be entered into evidence because he felt the officer acted on a
hunch, not reasonable grounds. In another case last year, Judge Irwin
Lampert ruled the officer had obtained permission for the search and
allowed the marijuana into evidence.

But Lampert also said judicial opinion in Moncton and elsewhere is
clearly divided on the subject. He suggested the matter should be
brought before the New Brunswick Court of Appeal for a decision.

When Michaud delivered his verdict yesterday, he quoted Arseneault's
case at length and came to the same finding. He ruled the marijuana
was not admissible and when the Crown said it had no more evidence to
present, he found Colbert not guilty. The accused was not in court
for the verdict.

Michaud said in this particular case, Raymond testified he became
suspicious because Colbert was driving a friend's vehicle from
Alberta to Newfoundland, while the friend flew home, his car was
littered with coffee cups and food wrappers, he was tired from
driving long hours and he was carrying hockey bags in the back of the
truck, which are frequently used to transport contraband.

The officer told the court they are trained to look for more than
just traffic offences while on patrol and he suspected Colbert was
carrying drugs. The Trans-Canada Highway in New Brunswick is known to
be a pipeline for drugs brought from central Canada to Atlantic Canada.

After the traffic matter was dealt with, Raymond asked Colbert
several questions and also asked about searching the vehicle. Colbert
refused, but eventually gave him permission to bring his dog over to
the vehicle. Michaud said police can detain someone if they have
reasonable grounds to connect them to a crime, but that was not the case here.

"What transpired was an ongoing investigation based on speculative
indicators that are no more reliable than a hunch," said the judge.