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The trial of a local man accused of second-degree murder has been postponed due to a COVID-19 outbreak at the Sudbury Jail.
The final Crown witness was expected to testify in the murder trial of 23-year-old Tyler Sels on Monday, but the accused was unable to attend court in person as a result of the outbreak.
Superior Court Justice Dan Cornell said “nothing of a substantive nature” could be discussed in his absence, so he decided to dismiss the jury for two days.
The trial is set to resume on Wednesday, and special arrangements have been made to ensure that the accused will be able to attend court proceedings.
Sels, who was arrested for second-degree murder and assault with a weapon following an attack on Sept. 15, 2018, is expected to take the stand this week.
“I was made aware of the fact that a COVID-19 outbreak has occurred at the Sudbury Jail such that the entire population of the jail is being relocated to various centres,” said Cornell on Monday.
“It is anticipated that it will be some two or three weeks before the jail is reopened. In the meantime, the prisoners will be sheltered in other locations.”
These other locations include the Central North Correctional Centre (also known as the Penetang Jail) in Penetanguishene in addition to other facilities in southern Ontario.
Cornell said he was advised that “under no circumstances” could Sels attend court proceedings via Zoom, and he made “extensive efforts” to see if special treatment could be accorded to the accused so the trial could continue.
It was initially unknown whether “special treatment” would be possible, and Cornell expressed concern about a mistrial.
“I want everyone to move heaven and earth to craft a solution,” said Cornell.
“The greatest consideration in my mind is the fact that if we have to declare a mistrial, I don’t want those poor young people to have to relive this whole thing again.”
Arrangements were ultimately made to have Sels remain in Sudbury until Wednesday night, at which point, he will be transferred to the North Bay Jail.
“All the pieces, at the moment, appear to be in place for (Sels) to be here until Wednesday night and the completion of proceedings, and for him to be housed in North Bay,” said Cornell.
“Transportation has been arranged so that he can be brought back and forth from North Bay as necessary.”
The judge ordered a COVID-19 test for Sels, which could cause a slight delay in proceedings.
Defence attorney Michael Puskas also said that he wasn’t able to speak to the accused over the weekend as a result of the outbreak at the jail.
Cornell allowed the defence half a day or three hours “via confidential Zoom link” to prepare the accused for his testimony.
Sels pleaded not guilty to second-degree murder in the death of 27-year-old Charles St. Jean, aggravated assault with a knife in wounding Stephanie Martin in a shoulder, and assault with a weapon (knife) in wounding Marc-Andre Leduc in a forearm.
The stabbing occurred in the shared deck of a Kingsway duplex where a celebration of life event was being held for a Boston Pizza employee in 2018.
What is not at issue in this trial was that Sels used a knife to stab three people, the jury was told.
Assistant Crown attorney Terry Waltenbury said the two key issues in the trial are what caused Sels to attack St. Jean and the other two people, and whether Sels used the knife in circumstances that were justified.
The trial is expected to resume on Wednesday when the Crown’s last witness will take the stand.
Public Health Sudbury and Districts reported the COVID-19 outbreak at the Sudbury Jail on Monday afternoon.
According to the health unit’s website, the outbreak was officially declared on Oct. 15.
A spokesperson for the Ministry of the Solicitor General said the outbreak was declared after cases of COVID-19 were confirmed in inmates at the jail.
The ministry is working in close consultation with Sudbury’s health unit to ensure the safety and well-being of correctional services staff and those in provincial custody.
“The ministry has decided to temporarily close the Sudbury Jail for a minimum of 14 days,” said ministry spokesperson Andrew Morrison.
“Approximately 145 inmates from the Sudbury Jail will be transferred to other facilities that have capacity and ability to isolate these inmates under droplet precautions separately from the general population.”
The ministry does not publicly disclose details on inmate transfers for security reasons.
“This temporary closure will allow facility staff to self-isolate and reduce the risk of transmission within the community,” said the spokesperson.
“The inmates from the Sudbury Jail who are COVID-19 positive will be isolated from the rest of the inmate population under droplet precautions at the receiving facilities while they receive appropriate medical care.”
Neither the health unit nor the ministry confirmed how many inmates tested positive for the virus.
A former Sudbury Jail employee told The Sudbury Star that if one inmate tested positive for COVID-19, it could have potentially spread to other areas of the facility “very quickly.”
“We are given personal protective equipment, but you have officers going in and out of there on a daily basis,” said the source.
“The only thing that’s stopping them from going in is a temperature check at the front door. If they have COVID, and they don’t have symptoms, you’d never know.”
The source, who elected to remain anonymous, said that the close quarters within the jail also pose a health risk.
“The inmates still go to school, they still go out for yard, and they still have their meals. Those meals are transferred from the kitchen to the ranges, and the dishes are gathered by the guards afterwards,” he said.
“There’s no such thing as confinement within the institution. They are free to come and go as they wish, and once something starts, it’s rampant. Once one gets it, everyone does.”
Colleen Romaniuk is a Local Journalism Initiative reporter at The Sudbury Star. The Local Journalism Initiative is made possible through funding from the federal government.
