By Tina Comeau
THE VANGUARD
NovaNewsNow.com
Tears flowed in a courtroom in Yarmouth last Wednesday, as family members of Neil Joseph Blades Jr. spoke of their heartbreak since his murder last July.
Blades’ mother, brother and father all read victim impact statements prior to the Feb. 24 sentencing of 25-year-old Alicia Marie Anderson.
Anderson received a conditional sentence and house arrest of two years less a day that will be followed up by one year of probation. Anderson had pleaded guilty to the charge of accessory to murder after the fact during a January court appearance.
House arrest of two years less one day is the longest period of house arrest a person can receive. The sentence was a joint recommendation by the Crown and defence, and was not outside the norm of other sentences in similar cases with similar circumstances.
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But the facts of the case cannot be reported.
Crown attorney Michelle Christenson asked for a media ban of the publication of the facts presented during to the sentencing hearing, saying making the facts public at this juncture could jeopardize the trials of two men who are charged with first-degree murder in this case. Jermaine Middleton and Ian Huskins are both in custody, awaiting their preliminary inquiries.
Court documents allege that Blades was killed on July 11 in Deerfield. His body was discovered the following evening under a bridge on the Eel Lake Road by a local resident. At the time, the RCMP said they knew immediately they were dealing with a homicide.
I’d just like to say how truly sorry I am. - Alicia Anderson
Supreme Court Justice Charles Haliburton granted the publication ban, saying that while the public has a right to know what transpires in court, and that it also has a right to scrutinize the justice system, that right is outweighed by an accused person’s right to a fair trial. Or in this case, two people’s rights.
The facts from Anderson’s sentencing can eventually be published or broadcast, but only at the conclusion of the Middleton and Huskins matters, whether that is months or years from now.
