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A Red Deer defence lawyer is accusing a judge of bullying after he was locked in a jail cell following a disagreement in court.
George Lebessis spent 10-15 minutes in lockup at the central Alberta courthouse on Nov. 8 after a back-and-forth with Justice Gordon Yake of the Alberta Court of Justice over the subpoenaing of a witness in an assault case.
Lebessis, a defence lawyer since 2013, says Yake raised his voice and demanded he answer a question, which Lebessis was not comfortable answering without more research.
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He believes he did nothing wrong and that the practice of jailing lawyers over disputes in court should be abolished.
“I think it’s important that we speak out about this,” he said in an interview. “The job is extremely difficult in and of itself, and this type of hostility towards defence counsel and this type of (berating) of counsel has no place in our justice system.”
The Alberta Court of Justice declined to comment. Lebessis — who walked out of court later that day — was ordered to appear before Yake on Friday.
‘Take him away’
The dispute happened during an assault trial in which Lebessis was representing the accused. The Crown had completed its case, and Lebessis intended to call an RCMP officer as a defence witness.
On Nov. 8, however, the constable was nowhere to be found.
Lebessis told court his understanding was the Crown had agreed to subpoena the witness (the prosecutor in court on Nov. 8 was not the same as the prosecutor at the previous trial date).
According to a court transcript, Yake asked Lebessis to confirm whether the Crown agreed to the subpoena in writing or whether he had done so verbally. Lebessis confirmed he did not have a formal written agreement but asked for time to discuss with the Crown what had been said rather than risk “making misrepresentations to the court.”
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“No, no, no,” the judge replied. “I want you to answer my question. Are you saying that Mr. Ellis (the previous Crown) told you he would subpoena this witness? Yes or no?”
Lebessis said the Crown had a note to that effect.
“No, no. Are you saying that?” Yake replied.
“I’m sorry, sir, I’m not a witness in this proceeding,” Lebessis responded.
“You will answer my question,” said the judge.
“I can’t,” said the lawyer.
Yake posed the question again. When Lebessis tried to interject, Yake scolded him for interrupting.
“Quiet now, or you will be in contempt,” Yake said. “Just be quiet. Answer my question, Mr. Lebessis. Just answer my question.”
“No, sir, I…,” Lebessis replied.
“No,” said Yake. “Do not interrupt me or you will go into that room in custody.”
“OK. Then bring me into custody,” Lebessis said.
The back and forth continued for several more seconds. Yake then declared, “Take him away.”
“Thank you,” said Lebessis. “Let’s go.”
After a 10-minute break, the Crown confirmed his colleague had in fact agreed to subpoena the officer.
“His exact words, ‘I’m sorry, I dropped the ball,’” the Crown said.
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Judge claims lawyer went voluntarily
After he was released from jail, Lebessis explained his hesitation to respond.
“The reason why I was reluctant to answer you is because I don’t actually have my physical file,” he told Yake, explaining he accidentally left some documents at home. “That’s my problem. So I’m not trying to avoid answering the question. I just don’t have my notes to verify that.”
Lebessis said he tried to communicate that to Yake and all he wanted was a brief adjournment to confirm the information another way.
“Why wouldn’t you tell me that at the outset — when I asked you the question?” the judge replied.
Yake maintained that Lebessis agreed to go into custody voluntarily. “You said that you were not going to answer that question and you would go into custody rather than answer that question,” the judge said. “You said, ‘Put me in custody.’”
Lebessis disagreed.
“Those were your words,” the judge said.
“I disagree with that,” Lebessis replied.
“Sir, don’t interrupt me again,” said Yake.
‘Absurd procedure’
Lebessis later applied for a mistrial — due to the missing witness — which Yake denied. Court was in the midst of hearing Lebessis’ application to resign from the case when he suggested a five-minute break.
When court resumed, Lebessis was not there. Multiple witnesses told Yake they saw him leave the building with his coat and briefcase in hand.
“He told me that I’m going to have to look for a new lawyer,” his client told court.
Yake said as the accused’s counsel, Lebessis “has an obligation to return” and ordered him to appear on Nov. 22. He reiterated his version of events.
“The only reason he went with the sheriff into custody is because he said ‘put me into custody’ when I asked him if he would answer that question,” Yake said. “So I accepted that invitation from him, and he was in custody for about 10 minutes.”
Lebessis said he’s had previous difficulties with Yake. He knows there may be repercussions for leaving court but said his experiences with the judge have left him so shaken he is considering leaving the law profession.
“I couldn’t continue, and I’m not going to be participating in this sort of absurd procedure,” he said of the day he left court. “Like, you say one thing wrong to this person and now you’re in jail? Who would want to do the job anymore?”
Lebessis is due in court on Friday at 9:30 a.m.
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