Man granted bail, gets stern warning from judge

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This article was published 28/03/2023 (1275 days ago), so information in it may no longer be current.

A man who was handed a slew of firearms and drug charges after last week’s raid at an 11th Street home by Brandon Police Service will be released on bail, despite strong opposition from the Crown.

Judge John Combs gave Larry Richard a stern warning on Monday to follow his court-ordered release conditions, reminding the 38-year-old — who is facing prior firearms and possession of meth charges from February in addition to the charges from last week — that he may have difficulty getting bail next time.

None of the allegations have been proven in court, and Richard remains innocent until proven guilty.

In February, police stopped a taxi after observing people in the vehicle who were not wearing seatbelts. Once the passengers in the taxi noticed police, they allegedly began to stuff items behind the seats of the vehicle. When police got to the car, they found a modified shotgun behind the seat with its serial number sawed off, along with a firearm clip containing three rounds that matched the shotgun, brass knuckles and bear spray.

At this time, Richard was charged and then later released on court-ordered conditions that required him to abide by a curfew and live at a certain address.

Just two days later, when police went to the address to check that Richard was following his curfew, a woman — who is co-accused with Richard — opened the door to the home and told police that Richard was her boyfriend and she had kicked him out of the house. Police later found Richard at another home and charged him for breaching his court condition. He was released from custody with a condition to live at a different address.

Last Thursday, the BPS major crimes unit executed a search warrant at a home on the 300 block of 11th Street, after a confidential informant tipped off police to illegal firearms that were allegedly in the home.

The raid, which shut down traffic on 11th Street that morning, resulted in the seizure of a modified handgun, gun magazine, rifle scope, a homemade weapon, knives, a sword and eight to 10 grams of crystal meth from the home.

Richard was charged with possession of meth, careless storage of a firearm and unauthorized possession of a firearm. Two women were also charged after the raid.

The Crown was opposed to Richard’s release, citing a strong case against Richard, who has a history of convictions for drugs and firearms, as well as the recent allegations of him being found breaching court-ordered conditions, like curfew conditions, address requirements and weapons prohibitions.

“Releasing [Richard] would put the administration of justice into disrepute and people would be concerned, knowing that a member of the public has access to these kinds of weapons and this quantity of drugs, and that this person can continue to reside in the community,” said Sarah Kok, the articling student speaking for the Crown.

Richard’s lawyer, Amado Claros, tried to poke holes in the case against his client, suggesting a possible charter challenge to the charges Richard received after police stopped the taxi in February. He also said there would be challenges in proving his client was connected to the illegal firearms and weapons found inside the 11th Street home last week.

“I believe that the case of the Crown stands at this point, with the presumption of innocence, with a reasonable strict bail plan that I am proposing,” Claros said, “Mr. Richard has met his onus and he is releasable on those terms.”

Claros presented a tight bail plan for his client, which included an absolute curfew as well as requiring Richard to post a $500 cash bail deposit and sign a $3,000 promise to pay to be released from jail. Richard can only leave his home for medical appointments, court dates and legal meetings.

The judge agreed with the defence that the Crown’s case may not be as airtight as they claim due to the difficulties of attaching responsibility to the weapons when numerous people were charged during the raid. However, Combs did agree with prosecutors that the allegations against Richard are serious.

“Mr. Richard is cloaked with the presumption of innocence, and if a reasonable bail plan can be presented to the court, the presumption is that Mr. Richard should be released,” Combs said. “That’s both in the Criminal Code and our Charter of Rights [and Freedoms].”

Ultimately, Combs found Richard’s bail plan to adequately address the concerns of the Crown and released Richard on bail, though not without multiple warnings for him to follow court orders.

“Mr. Richard will be on a very short leash. If he is caught breaching this order, I would suggest to him that he will have a difficult task to convince a judge to release him again,” Combs said.

Richard is scheduled to next appear in court on April 17.

Shae Lynn Dedelley, who was co-accused with Richard as a result of the raid on Thursday, also appeared in court Monday and was released from Brandon Correctional Centre. She will next appear in court on April 13.

» gmortfield@brandonsun.com