Ontario appeals judge’s decision to stay murder charges over Maplehurst inmate abuse

The Maplehurst Correctional Complex is shown in Milton, Ont., on Friday, March 8, 2024. THE CANADIAN PRESS/Nathan Denette

Ontario is appealing a judge’s decision to stay the murder charges against three men due to the abuse they suffered at a jail in Milton in 2023.

In an application filed to the Ontario Court of Appeal, the Crown argued that the judge, Justice Clayton Conlan, “erred by materially misapprehending the evidence and/or making findings in the absence of evidence that go to the core of his findings of state misconduct and systemic issues.”

Conlan ruled on Oct. 24 that the Charter violations that took place at Maplehurst Correctional Complex in late December 2023 were “akin to torture” and “an outrage to basic standards of decency.”

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Conlan, in his decision, said over two days, on Dec. 22 and Dec. 23, about 200 inmates, including the three men facing first-degree murder charges, were strip-searched and restrained with zip-ties while wearing only their underwear.

The actions of the correctional officers, Conlan wrote, were in retribution for an earlier assault on a fellow officer by one inmate.

However, none of the three accused, Joseph Richard Whitlock, Kulvir Singh Bhatia, and Karn Veer Sandhu, was involved in the assault.

The three men were believed to be behind the fatal shooting of Arman Dhillon in 2022.

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Conlan wrote that a trial in the case would “serve to perpetuate the wrongs that occurred here.”

“If a stay of proceedings is not granted, and if these wrongs are left alone, they will, in my opinion, leave an indelible scar on the administration of justice and continue to trouble us all.”

In the Notice of Appeal, in addition to arguing that the judge erred in finding breaches of the Charter, the Crown claimed that Conlan applied the incorrect threshold for a stay of proceedings in a residual category case and that he failed to consider material and relevant factors in deciding to issue a stay of proceedings.

The Crown is seeking the appeal to be allowed, and a new trial is ordered on all the charges.

With files from Codi Wilson