ianstone
10-04-2010, 01:04 PM
Last Updated: October 4, 2010 10:52am http://storage.canoe.ca/v1/dynamic_resize/?src=http://www.torontosun.com/news/canada/2010/10/04/shafia248.jpg&size=248x186 Det. Const. Guy Forbes leads Mohammed Shafia into court in Kingston in this file photo. (Michael Lea/QMI Agency)
KINGSTON, Ont. - More than a year after three girls and a woman were found dead inside a car submerged in the Rideau Canal, a Kingston, Ont., courtroom has been converted into a high-tech legal battleground.
Lawyers will square off this week in the superior courthouse as the murder case against three members of a Montreal family begins a key phase.
Lawyers will begin arguing pre-trial motions Tuesday.
Mohammad Shafia, 57, his wife Tooba Mohammad Yahya, 40, and their son Hamed, 19, face four counts each of first-degree murder.
They are accused of killing three members of their family, teenage sisters, and Shafia’s first wife.
Zainab, 19, Sahari, 17, and Geeti, 13, along with Rona Amir Mohammad, 50, were found dead in a car that was discovered early on the morning of June 30, 2009, submerged in about three metres of water near a lock in the Rideau Canal, just outside Kingston.
On July 22, the mother, father and son were arrested in Montreal and charged with murder.
They have been in custody since their arrest.
Tens of thousands of dollars have been spent on improvements to the courthouse because of cultural issues and the complexity of the case.
Instantaneous translation will be provided in three languages - Farsi, a dialect of Persian, French and English.
Two soundproof booths have been installed on a raised platform to the left of the judge. Each booth can accommodate two translators.
Four large, flat-screen TV monitors have been installed.
Large audio speakers are positioned on each side of the room and an audio visual control station was created where a technician manages a multi-channel audio control board.
Spectators and participants inside the courtroom will be provided with headsets and wireless receiver units that provide the audio feed from the interpreters.
The Ministry of the Attorney General has refused to answer questions about the courthouse changes or costs.
On Tuesday, lawyers will put the equipment to the test as they begin presenting motions to Mr. Justice Robert Maranger, the Ottawa judge who also will preside over the trial.
The pre-trial process was supposed to begin Monday but a problem in co-ordinating witnesses caused a last-minute delay.
The pre-trial phase is expected to last a month.
The trial is scheduled to begin April 18, 2011 and run for three months.
Though lawyers won’t reveal what motions they will argue, during this stage the defence typically seeks to limit the evidence that prosecutors can present or to restrict the scope of inquiry.
The pre-trial stage also is the period when a change-of-venue application can be made and motions are presented to exclude information about the background of an accused person or to exclude statements he or she has made.
Crown prosecutors presented 22 witnesses during a 15-day preliminary hearing that included the filing of thick stacks of documents and DVD exhibits.
KINGSTON, Ont. - More than a year after three girls and a woman were found dead inside a car submerged in the Rideau Canal, a Kingston, Ont., courtroom has been converted into a high-tech legal battleground.
Lawyers will square off this week in the superior courthouse as the murder case against three members of a Montreal family begins a key phase.
Lawyers will begin arguing pre-trial motions Tuesday.
Mohammad Shafia, 57, his wife Tooba Mohammad Yahya, 40, and their son Hamed, 19, face four counts each of first-degree murder.
They are accused of killing three members of their family, teenage sisters, and Shafia’s first wife.
Zainab, 19, Sahari, 17, and Geeti, 13, along with Rona Amir Mohammad, 50, were found dead in a car that was discovered early on the morning of June 30, 2009, submerged in about three metres of water near a lock in the Rideau Canal, just outside Kingston.
On July 22, the mother, father and son were arrested in Montreal and charged with murder.
They have been in custody since their arrest.
Tens of thousands of dollars have been spent on improvements to the courthouse because of cultural issues and the complexity of the case.
Instantaneous translation will be provided in three languages - Farsi, a dialect of Persian, French and English.
Two soundproof booths have been installed on a raised platform to the left of the judge. Each booth can accommodate two translators.
Four large, flat-screen TV monitors have been installed.
Large audio speakers are positioned on each side of the room and an audio visual control station was created where a technician manages a multi-channel audio control board.
Spectators and participants inside the courtroom will be provided with headsets and wireless receiver units that provide the audio feed from the interpreters.
The Ministry of the Attorney General has refused to answer questions about the courthouse changes or costs.
On Tuesday, lawyers will put the equipment to the test as they begin presenting motions to Mr. Justice Robert Maranger, the Ottawa judge who also will preside over the trial.
The pre-trial process was supposed to begin Monday but a problem in co-ordinating witnesses caused a last-minute delay.
The pre-trial phase is expected to last a month.
The trial is scheduled to begin April 18, 2011 and run for three months.
Though lawyers won’t reveal what motions they will argue, during this stage the defence typically seeks to limit the evidence that prosecutors can present or to restrict the scope of inquiry.
The pre-trial stage also is the period when a change-of-venue application can be made and motions are presented to exclude information about the background of an accused person or to exclude statements he or she has made.
Crown prosecutors presented 22 witnesses during a 15-day preliminary hearing that included the filing of thick stacks of documents and DVD exhibits.