A judge in Moncton has dismissed a request to halt the 19 charges against Daniel Bard due to trial delays. Provincial court Judge Anne Richard deemed the application as lacking merit. As a result, Bard’s case is set to proceed to trial in January.
Bard, aged 61, is facing accusations of theft, fraud, money laundering, and possession of unlawfully obtained property, with the charges having been brought forth in 2022. The alleged crimes took place in the Moncton area between 2016 and 2020, some of which reportedly occurred during Bard’s tenure as a vice-president at a municipally-funded regional economic development agency called 3+ Corp.
Defense attorney Nelson Peters, representing Bard, filed the application asserting that Bard’s right to a prompt trial had been breached and requested for the charges to be stayed. This type of request, known as a Jordan application, originates from a 2016 Supreme Court of Canada ruling stating that most cases in provincial court should be substantially concluded within 18 months from the laying of charges to avoid the risk of charges being stayed.
Peters argued that Bard’s case had surpassed the 18-month timeline, attributing the delays to the prosecution’s inadequacies in expediting the trial process. However, Crown prosecutors contended that Bard or his legal team had caused delays, rendering the application baseless. Judge Richard concurred with this stance, noting that Bard had either directly or indirectly consented to certain delays and that Peters had miscalculated the time elapsed.
The judge provided a detailed overview of the case’s timeline, highlighting multiple trial scheduling changes and Bard’s switch to his third lawyer, James Matheson, due to financial reasons. Despite an initial trial start in April, Matheson’s withdrawal led to a mistrial declaration. Subsequently, Bard sought another government-appointed lawyer, Nelson Peters, who later requested trial date postponements and filed the Jordan application.
Richard emphasized that Bard had agreed to delays during various court appearances, which would not be counted toward the 18-month limit as per the Jordan ruling. The decision was met with no comment from either the Crown prosecutors or Bard’s lawyer after leaving the courthouse.
Regarding Bard’s retrial, set for January, Peters had previously sought to be relieved as Bard’s counsel but was denied. An application for a second government-funded lawyer to represent Bard during the trial is pending consideration. The retrial is scheduled to commence on January 20 and extend to mid-February.
