Crown apologizes to judge for its own witness at Millard murder trial
Former police officer has to be repeatedly cautioned by judge for talking out of turn, even talking over her
A police officer who interviewed Dellen Millard on the night of his father's death in 2012 appeared rattled by some tough questions about his investigation and note-taking as Millard's first-degree murder trial continued in Ontario Superior Court in Toronto Tuesday.
Retired detective James Hutcheon, one of the officers who spent almost an hour interviewing Millard on the night his father was reported dead, returned to the witness box Tuesday.
Hutcheon had to be repeatedly cautioned by the judge for talking out of turn, and was showing clear frustration over the questions he was being asked by Millard's lawyer, Ravin Pillay.
Hutcheon even tried to talk over the judge at one point, prompting the Crown to apologize to the court for its own witness at the end of the day.
"Retired officer Hutcheon was very rude to you," assistant Crown attorney Jill Cameron said, while apologizing to Justice Maureen Forestell.
During his cross-examination, Pillay repeatedly pressed Hutcheon about his recollection of the case, and the strength of his notes. Millard's lawyer was more forceful in his cross-examination than he has been throughout most the trial — as Hutcheon was also the first witness to testify that he found Millard's death suspicious.
"I don't know why you keep asking me the same questions," Hutcheon said at one point, his voice rising.
Death originally ruled a suicide
The death of Wayne Millard, 71, was originally ruled a suicide. He was found at his home at 5 Maple Gate Court in Etobicoke, a Toronto suburb, with a single gunshot wound through his eye.
The Crown contends his son Dellen, 32, killed him, but the case was only reopened after the younger Millard was charged with the murders of Hamilton's Tim Bosma in 2013 and Toronto's Laura Babcock in 2012.
Millard was found guilty in the Bosma and Babcock deaths, and is currently serving consecutive life sentences.
He has pleaded not guilty to killing his father in the judge-alone trial.
Hutcheon testified Monday that "lots of things" made him think Millard's death was suspicious — chief among them how long it took for his son to call 911 after he allegedly found his father's body.
"The first thing Dellen Millard did when he found his dad was deceased was not to call 911, but to call his mother … and they waited until she arrived at the home to call 911," Hutcheon said.
Defence doubts officer's notes
Pillay said the retired officer's notes couldn't be trusted because he didn't have a notebook with him for a large portion of the evening when he was at Millard's home.
Instead, court heard, the officer scribbled down some notes on a scratch pad, and entered his notes from some portions of the evening into his official police notebook from memory later on in the night.
"You recall every single word my client said to you at the scene?" Pillay asked.
"No sir," Hutcheon said.
Det. Tricia Johnston was working with Hutcheon on the night Millard's body was found. She testified she never suspected Millard had anything to do with the death of his father.
"He was quiet, he seemed co-operative … he was kind of reserved," she said.
Other officers have testified that Millard seemed almost devoid of emotion on the night his father died. Both Johnston and another Toronto police officer, Max Bevilacqua, painted a slightly different picture.
"He was calm, he was forthright with information," Bevilacqua said.
Millard's trial isn't sitting Wednesday. It will resume on Thursday, with testimony from Marlena Meneses.
Court has heard that she and her then-boyfriend, Mark Smich, were hanging out at Smich's house in Oakville, Ont. on the night that Wayne Millard was killed.
Meneses was a key witness at both the Bosma and Babcock trials, where she also appeared as a Crown witness.
- Read a recap of the CBC's live blog from inside the courtroom below. On mobile and can't see the live blog? View it here.
ABOUT THE AUTHOR
