The defence next indicated they were waiving the preliminary inquiry on the new charge and the matter was scheduled for arraignment in Supreme Court at 1 p.m.
However from there things proceeded very quickly and by 11:30 a.m. the matter was being heard inside a Supreme Court courtroom where Middleton was arraigned on the new charge, to which he pleaded guilty.
The charge against Middleton was read aloud by Supreme Court Justice Pat Duncan. It stated that on or about July 11 in Deerfield that Middleton “did, knowing that Ian Matthew Huskins had murdered Neil Joseph Blades, did assist Ian Matthew Huskins for the purpose of enabling Ian Matthew Huskins to escape.”
In the weeks following the Blades murder, Huskins was on the run from the police. A warrant for his arrest was issued on July 20 at the same time he was charged with first-degree murder. By that point time Middleton was already in custody, also charged with first-degree murder.
Alicia Marie Anderson was also in custody on a charge of accessory to murder after the fact.
Huskins turned himself in to police on Aug. 4.
After court on Thursday, the Crown explained that in the wording of the accessory charge, the word “escape” does not necessarily mean helping a person to run away. Rather the charge is about helping a person escape liability for a crime they’ve committed.
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“There could be different ways you can do it and I can’t comment specifically on what Mr. Middleton did, but it could be through destruction of evidence, it could be through assisting him or encouraging him to run away by hiding, by telling others to shut up or by lying about what he actually knew happened, so there are a number of ways that could be committed,” said Morrison.
Asked when discussions about dropping the murder charge began between the Crown and defence, Morrison said the discussions had been ongoing for a while, and also involved interviews with people who would be called as witnesses in the case.
“Part of it was looking at the evidence that we had and the witnesses we had and what they are able to offer and meeting with them,” Morrison said, adding "it was not a last-minute thing."
“Discussions have been ongoing for a while,” he said.
During Middleton’s arraignment in Supreme Court, the defence said there was no need for the preparation of a pre-sentence report, and also stated that the submission for sentencing would be a joint recommendation between it and the Crown.
The range of sentence in cases of accessory run all over the map, depending on what the person did, what they knew and what their record is. Because there is no minimum sentence, the penalty can range from a low of probation to a maximum of years of imprisonment.
Just one week earlier Alicia Anderson was sentenced to a conditional sentence and house arrest of two years less a day, to be followed by one year of probation, after pleading guilty to a charge of accessory to murder after the fact in the Blades case.
During the sentencing hearing, the mother, father and brother of Neil Blades read emotional victim impact statements outling how Blades' death has impacted their lives and the sorrow that they have lived through.
The facts presented during Anderson's sentencing hearing are banned from publication until the conclusion of the cases of all of those charged in connection with Blades murder.
The Crown indicated it will be seeking a similar ban on the publication of evidence when Middleton is sentenced on April 26.
