New trial dates set in sex-crime case
Lance Thomas Sappier, 30, of Fredericton, has hired new defence lawyer privately after court denied his application for state-funded counsel due to lacking financial information
A sex-crimes suspect whose application to the courts to order the province to pay for his defence counsel has since hired a lawyer to represent him, prompting a significant delay in his trial.
Lance Thomas Sappier, 30, of Saunders Street, elected last year to be tried in provincial court and pleaded not guilty to charges of online luring of a minor, invitation to that child to touch themselves for a sexual purpose with a hairbrush, and exposure of his genitals to the same underage complainant, all between Dec. 27, 2015, and Dec. 26, 2018.
His trial on those counts had been set for Sept. 4 and 5, but the case has been before the courts repeatedly on the issue of defence counsel.