WEDNESDAY
‘Know it All’ October entertainment agenda
The sixth and final installment of our candidates’ forum
OCTOBER 14, 2015
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Vol. 64, Issue 197
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Carjacker takes the stand in cop’s trial TOWNSMAN STAFF
A key witness to the Crown’s case in the trial of an RCMP officer took the stand on Tuesday in Cranbrook Supreme Court. Nickolas Bullock, the man shot at the end of a police pursuit, testified
his recollection of events on Oct. 2, 2012 in and around Cranbrook. Following the incident, Cst. Richard Drought faced a charge of careless use of a firearm after the Independent Investigations Office (IIO) recommended
the charge in April 2013. Crown counsel began with direct examination of Bullock’s memory of the incident, while defence counsel focused cross-examination on inconsistent statements made to investigators and at a preliminary in-
quiry. Testifying in front of Justice Trevor Armstrong and a jury, Bullock recounted his journey from Port Coquitlam to Creston to a rural acreage outside Cranbrook where the shooting incident occurred.
Bullock said he stole a Chevrolet Malibu from Port Coquitlam along with a 17-year-old female, before running out of gas outside Creston. He testified a Toyota 4Runner pulled over and offered the two a ride. Bullock said he fell asleep
in the back seat, while the female was in the passenger seat. Bullock said he woke up to an argument between the young woman and the driver, and pulled out a can of bear spray, resting the nozzle on the back of the driver’s head. Bullock said he ordered the driver to pull over and get out and sprayed the man to prevent him from calling the RCMP. He testified that it was snowing heavily as he drove into Cranbrook, with an RCMP cruiser initiating a pursuit on the outskirts of town on Highway 3/95. Having been in a few high-speed chases before, Bullock testified that he sped up and swerved
into oncoming traffic in an erratic fashion to try and force RCMP to call off the pursuit due to public safety. Bullock said he turned onto Victoria Ave after the two eastbound lanes were occupied with traffic at a red light, and continued driving up the middle of the road until reaching a gravel laneway on the backside of the College of the Rockies Gold Creek Campus. Bullock testified he crashed through a fence and drove around some trees, ending up near a garage on a rural property. He said he contemplated running, but didn’t because the snow would give away his footprints.
See FIREARM , Page 4
Coroner identifies accident victims FOR THE TOWNSMAN
BARRY COULTER PHOTO
High octane Toronto-based duo Scarlett Jane (Cindy Doire on left and Andrea Ramolo on right), brought their country rock sound to the Studio Stage Door in Cranbrook, Thursday, Oct. 8, the second in the Cranbrook Live Concert Series. Up next — Australian singer-songwriter Daniel Champagne, Thursday, Nov. 19.
Kootenay–Columbia
DW4MP.ca
Authorized by the Official Agent for David Wilks
The BC Coroners Service has confirmed the identity of two women who died following a motor vehicle incident near Cranbrook on Oct. 5, 2015. They were Helen May Stairs, aged 81, and her daughter, Jane Marina Stairs, aged 40, both of Cranbrook. Helen Stairs was the driver and Jane Stairs the front-seat passenger
in a car that was heading westbound on Highway 3/93. Approximately 40 kilometres east of Cranbrook at about 3:15 p.m. on Oct. 5, the car was in collision with an eastbound pickup truck. Both the driver and passenger were deceased at the scene. The BC Coroners Service and RCMP Traffic Services continue to investigate these deaths.