kamloopsthisweek.com kamloopsthisweek kamthisweek
MARCH 11, 2020 | Volume 33 No. 21
SNOW REPORT Sun Peaks Resort Mid-mountain: 191 cm Alpine: 214 cm Harper Mountain Total snow: 266 cm
COLLECT THE DEBRIS
VIRUS UPDATE
WEATHER Chance of flurries High 8 C Low -4 C
WEDNESDAY
School trips cancelled and Canada’s first death
Grant will see those in need hired to clean up drug paraphernalia
NEWS/A10
NEWS/A5
Defence argues pair’s Charter rights were violated TIM PETRUK STAFF REPORTER tim@kamloopsthisweek.com
Carley and Adam Eliason have two daughters: Holly, 4, and Lucy, 2. The couple is expecting a fifth member of the family in June, when McKenzie is due to arrive. But problems in the womb mean the baby will lose an arm. A family friend has created a GoFundMe campaign to help raise money for the family as it prepares for baby Mckenzie’s birth.
RALLYING FOR BABY MCKENZIE SEAN BRADY STAFF REPORTER sbrady@kamloopsthisweek.com
The child a Kamloops mother is carrying will soon need her arm amputated due to a rare birth defect discovered halfway through an otherwise healthy pregnancy.
If all goes according to schedule, Carley Eliason will meet her daughter, McKenzie, in about 100 days. But she does not yet know if her daughter will lose her arm before or after she leaves the womb. At her 20-week checkup at Royal Inland Hospital, an ultra-
sound technician examined baby McKenzie through the walls of her mother’s belly, measuring her heart and her limbs. Something wasn’t right. McKenzie’s right forearm was swollen, nearly to the size of the 20-week old fetus’ head. See BABY, A4
A B.C. Supreme Court judge will decide whether a Kamloops man used excessive force last fall when he slashed a man and beat a woman after they took him on a wild ride on the back of his stolen pickup truck. Derrick Pearson and Crystal Dorrington are on trial in Kamloops Law Courts, each facing a string of charges, including dangerous driving, assault with a weapon and mischief endangering life. Lawyers representing the two accused have asked B.C. Supreme Court Justice Dev Dley to throw out the charges on the grounds their Charter rights were violated by Francis Payette, the owner of the stolen truck, during a citizen’s arrest. Police dash-cam video played in court shows Payette elbowing Dorrington in the face while having her pinned to the ground. Payette also admitted to slashing Pearson with a knife and punching Dorrington in the face prior to police arrival, though he later denied having punched her. In the video and in a photo shown to court, Dorrington is seen to have severe injuries to her nose, which defence lawyers Sheldon Tate and John Gustafson say came from a bite by Payette — an allegation he has denied.
Francis Payette’s truck erupted in flames in Westyde on Oct. 16, 2019, after thieves crashed it — with Payette in the flatbed. JOLENE ANDERSON/FACEBOOK
Dorrington required reconstructive plastic surgery to repair her nose. The video depicts a chaotic scene. When police arrived, Payette was on top of Dorrington and striking her in the face. Beside them, Payette’s truck was ablaze and black smoke filled the air. Officers in the video rushed to help Payette subdue the woman, but he remained on top of her. He could be heard later menacing her repeatedly while she spoke to Mounties. At one point in the video, an officer describes Payette as “an orangutang,” but Payette is never shown to be arrested and he was not charged. See TRIAL, A6
Electric vehicle charging station
50%OVER PRE SOL -LE D/ ASE D Bike parking & shower/ change room
10 years reduced property taxes
Underground parking for purchase or lease
THEHIVEKAMLOOPS.COM