Defendant threatens Fredericton judge in court

Joshua Daniel Grant Burden, 48, stated he’ll assault judge, claimed he killed 173 people in self-defence, demanded U.S. Navy Seals provide him with defence lawyer

A homeless Fredericton man cursed repeatedly at a judge presiding over his bail hearing Monday and threatened violence if the court kept “fucking with” him.

Joshua Daniel Grant Burden, 48, of no fixed address, appeared in Fredericton provincial court by video from the Saint John Regional Correctional Centre on Monday.

Joshua Daniel Grant Burden (Photo: Facebook)

He’s accused of break, enter and theft at City Auto on Main Street, and theft of a motor vehicle belonging to Nicolas McPhee, both on April 19; a sexual assault against a woman June 6; and uttering threats to Eric Lanteigne and Terri-Lynn Stewart to cause them death and/or bodily harm, and breaching a police undertaking prohibiting him from contact with the woman he’s alleged to have sexually assaulted, all on June 7.

The woman’s name is protected by a court-ordered publication ban.

Burden’s bail hearing had begun a week before, but at its conclusion, Judge Scott Brittain ordered him to undergo a five-day psychiatric assessment to determine if he was fit to stand trial.

As the judge began to say Monday the assessment report filed with the court indicated Burden is fit, the defendant ranted and interrupted, something he kept doing throughout Monday’s proceedings.

He said he didn’t want to be represented by duty counsel Edward Derrah and demanded the court “get a lawyer through the United States Navy Seals.”

“You better call the Seals because I’m not screwing with you guys,” Burden said, clad in an orange shirt and pants issued by the jail.

The judge, after noting the issue of his fitness to stand trial was resolved, told Burden he was facing three new charges: all breaches of a probation order requiring him to keep the peace and be of good behaviour, all flowing from his other counts.

“I don’t understand,” the defendant said after Brittain read the first of the new counts to him. “You’ll have to explain to me in straight English.”

As Brittain tried to explain that the alleged probation violations stemmed from the other charges, Burden kept insisting he’d committed no crimes.

“She initiated the contact with me and voided the no-contact order,” the defendant said.

“She breaching the fucking no-contact order. There’s no charge. I plead not guilty.”

Burden’s interpretation of the alleged breach of no-contact condition of his police undertaking is incorrect. 

People with whom defendants are ordered to have no contact aren’t subject to such orders, and judges frequently tell people appearing before them if they encounter individuals with whom they’re not supposed to communicate, they should turn around and walk the other way.

There was no indication during Monday’s proceedings if anyone had explained that to Burden.

At one point in the proceedings, Burden stood up and remained standing, so his face wasn’t visible on camera. It turned out correctional officers at the jail had removed the chair during one of his angrier outbursts.

While standing, Burden scratched his crotch on camera through his clothing.

‘You should be worried’

The defendant also ranted that he and the unnamed complainant had consensual sex, declaring that charge was null and void as well.

After reading the new counts, Brittain asked prosecutor Rodney Jordan about his position on release on the new charges, and Jordan said the Crown objected to Burden’s release on those counts as well.

“If you keep fucking with me, you should be worried about what I’m going to do to you,” Burden told the judge.

“So you got no case. There’s no charges, so release me.”

During the proceedings, Burden could be heard telling a correctional guard in the room with him that someone should drug the complainant and bring her to the courthouse so she could testify there was no sexual assault.

The defendant’s behaviour flipped back and forth between enraged and menacing to bizarre and seemingly unhinged.

“There’s 173 people who tried to assault me,” he said, indicating he’d killed them and called the police to collect the bodies. “I acted in self-defence.”

More than halfway through Monday’s hearing, Burden suddenly declared he’d legally changed his name, had informed the Fredericton Police Force of that fact and demanded the judge stop referring to him as Joshua Burden.

“My legal name is Christopher Scott Kyle,” he said.

Courtroom No. 5 in the Justice Building in downtown Fredericton. (Photo: Don MacPherson/The Fredericton Independent)

At one point, duty counsel Gerald Pugh took over from Derrah, as Pugh had been defence counsel at the original bail hearing June 12.

While Burden kept insisting the complainant from the sex-assault charge be called as a witness, she wasn’t present. Pugh said in light of that, Burden wanted to testify again, so Brittain swore Burden in again as a witness.

Or at least he tried.

“Do you solemnly affirm to tell the truth, the whole truth and nothing but the truth?” the judge asked him.

“No,” Burden answered. “Everything you say is all lies.”

All evidence and testimony presented at the bail hearing, both on Monday and June 12, is subject to a court-ordered publication ban until the case concludes, so what Burden said during that testimony can’t be reported at this time.

Criminal responsibility raised

Pugh said while Burden had been assessed and deemed fit to stand trial, it might be worth considering another assessment, but this time to determine if his client might be exempt from criminal responsibility due to a mental disorder at the time of the alleged offences.

Burden kept interjecting and yelling as others spoke, including Pugh, and the judge repeatedly told the defendant to keep quiet.

“Mr. Burden, stop interrupting!” Brittain said loudly toward the end of Monday’s hearing.

“What? Fuck off!” Burden responded.

Pugh acknowledged the defence wasn’t moving for an assessment on criminal responsibility, but noted the Criminal Code of Canada allows the prosecution to request one or for the court to order one on its own motion if either believes there are grounds for it.

Jordan declined to do so, and the judge didn’t order it.

As Brittain delivered his ruling that Burden’s detention was justified, the defendant exploded in a rage once again.

“I’ll meet you in the parking lot at the courthouse and punch your fucking face off!” he yelled.

The judge remanded Burden and set the case over to July 10 for election of mode of trial and pleas.

Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.