A trial will go ahead in Cranbrook Supreme Court for a West Kootenay man who has been charged with threatening a Cranbrook prosecutor.
A date will be set for the trial of Darryl Bruce McDowell on May 5. McDowell has been charged with uttering threats to cause death or bodily harm, and criminal harassment.
The preliminary inquiry was held in Cranbrook Provincial Court on April 7, and Judge Meg Shaw handed down her decision on Wednesday, April 9.
While McDowell did not appear for the preliminary inquiry – the contents of which are protected by a publication ban – he was in custody in Rossland on April 9 and appeared via video from the court house there.
Judge Shaw found that Crown prosecutor Robert Bruneau had called sufficient evidence for the case to be submitted to trial.
As Judge Shaw read her decision, McDowell called out to her, saying that she has no authority over him. Sheriffs were forced to shut off the microphone in the Rossland court room so McDowell did not interrupt proceedings, but he was still able to hear Judge Shaw's decision.
The microphone was briefly switched back on at the end of the hearing, and McDowell called out, "Go to hell," to the judge.
He was retained in custody pending a bail hearing in Rossland later on Wednesday, April 9. The results of that custody hearing were not available at time of print.
Last May, the B.C. Criminal Justice Branch released a statement saying that McDowell had been arrested and charged with allegedly threatening and harassing an employee of the branch.