Sex-crime suspect faces trial without lawyer
Lance Thomas Sappier, 29, appealed legal-aid refusal but that was denied as well, so court sets hearing for application for appointment of state-funded defence counsel
A Fredericton man headed to trial next year on sex-crime allegations without legal representation will ask a judge to order the attorney general to pay for defence counsel.
Earlier this year, Lance Thomas Sappier, 29, of Saunders Street, elected to be tried in provincial court and pleaded not guilty to three indictable charges alleging sex-related offences.
He’s charged with communicating online with a person he believed to be under 16 for the purpose of committing a sex offence, inviting that minor to touch themselves for a sexual purpose with a hairbrush and exposing his genitals to that complainant.
It’s alleged he committed those offences in Fredericton between Dec. 27, 2015, and Dec. 26, 2018.
Sappier was back in court Thursday to schedule his trial and to provide an update on his efforts to retain counsel.
Court heard Sappier, after being denying legal aid based on his income, appealed that decision, but it was denied as well.
His plan is to make what’s called a Rowbotham application to the court for state-funded defence counsel to be appointed.
Such a process is named for the precedent that established it, and for Sappier to be successful, he’ll have to show he can’t afford to hire a defence lawyer privately and that his right to a fair trial would be compromised if he were forced to represent himself.
Judge Mary Jane Richards told the defendant Thursday that at his Rowbotham hearing, he’ll have to testify about his financial circumstances and why the court should grant his application.
The judge scheduled Sappier’s Rowbotham hearing for Jan. 31.
It was suggested trial dates should be set after that hearing, but Richards said the court isn’t waiting for that to happen. She set Sappier’s trial for Sept. 4 and 5 next fall.
Don MacPherson can be contacted at ftonindependent@gmail.com.