Judge eases bail terms in sheep abduction case

by SHELBY WYE

Two people facing charges in a case involving the abduction of 31 sheep from a quarantined Northumberland County farm will see some relief in the terms of their bail conditions.

But it won’t be until the end of the month that Linda Frances (Montana) Jones, Northumberland County, and Michael Schmidt, Grey County, find out if they will be allowed to keep their current lawyers.

Jones and Schmidt as well as Robert Pinnell, Durham County and Suzanne Atkinson, Northumberland County, are facing charges of conspiracy to commit obstruction of a Canadian Food Inspection Agency (CFIA) inspector, conspiracy to transport or cause to transport an animal under quarantine and conspiracy to defraud the public of a service over $5,000 under the Criminal Code. Under the Health of Animals Act and Regulations all four face charges of obstructing a CFIA inspector and transport or causing to transport an animal under quarantine.

Jones is also charged with obstructing a CFIA inspection under the Health of Animals Act. Pinnell is charged with attempting to obstruct justice and faces another charge for obstructing a police officer. Both of Pinnell’s charges are under the criminal code.

On Wednesday at the Ontario Criminal Court of Justice in Cobourg, Judge Robert Graydon permitted Jones and Schmidt to meet to discuss their fundraising campaign to cover their legal costs.

Bail conditions had previously included movement and communication bans for all four people charged. Under the bans, those charged were not allowed to contact one another beyond discussions for their next actions in court.

At the court on Wednesday were Pinnell and lawyer Karen Selick, who is representing Jones and Schmidt.

The entire “status check” took about twenty minutes, but was split in half by a recess to allow new bail conditions to be written and revised.

A date was also set, prior to the case appearance, for a teleconference to discuss whether Selick would be allowed to continue being on the record for Jones and Schmidt.

At a previous hearing, legal counsel for the CFIA argued that Selick, and Shawn Buckley (who is also representing Jones and Schmidt) were working with a conflict of interest.

The assertion stems from Selick’s presence at Jones’ farm rally on April 2, 2012, the day the sheep are alleged to have disappeared.

This teleconference between CFIA representatives and the persons charged, and their lawyers, will take place on June 27.

The next Cobourg court appearance for the case is July 3. BF

– with files from Susan Mann