B.J. Marriott to plead guilty in brutal attack at Burnside jail, says lawyer
Marriott one of 15 inmates charged in attack two years ago at Central Nova Scotia Correctional Centre
The lawyer for Brian James (B.J.) Marriott says his client will plead guilty to a charge of aggravated assault in connection with an attack on an inmate at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Centre in December 2019.
Lawyer Nathan Gorham appeared by video in Nova Scotia Supreme Court Tuesday morning to announce the planned guilty plea. Marriott also appeared by video from a jail in Cape Breton.
Justice Jamie Campbell said he would prefer that the guilty plea be entered in person, so the matter will return to court on Jan. 12 to put the plea on the record.
The Crown has indicated it will try to have Marriott declared a dangerous offender, meaning he could be locked up indefinitely. A dangerous offender hearing would likely run at least a couple of weeks and has not yet been scheduled.
Marriott one of 15 men accused in attack
Marriott is one of 15 men accused of attacking Stephen Anderson in his cell at the facility in Dartmouth, N.S., which is commonly known as the Burnside jail.
Anderson had only been in the jail about 20 minutes on the evening of Dec. 2, 2019, when the attack occurred. He suffered serious injuries but has since recovered.
Because of the complicated nature of the case involving so many defendants, the charges were broken into two separate trials.
Campbell delivered decisions in those two trials last month. He found 12 accused guilty of aggravated assault and one guilty of obstruction.
The judge said the Crown failed to prove the two most serious charges against the group, attempted murder and conspiracy to commit murder.
Inmates sentenced separately
Evidence at the two trials showed about seven men entered Anderson's cell to attack him while the others formed a human wall outside the cell to prevent guards from intervening. Marriott was part of that wall.
Each of the other 13 inmates are being sentenced separately over the next several months.
The 15th man, Sophon Sec, will have his charges dealt with in the new year.