http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/gerry-belliveau-rcmp-python-investigation-1.4060052

'People did not stay in their lanes': ex-RCMP investigator reflects on python case

69 Comments
Commenting is now closed for this story.

David Raymond Amos

Perhaps the RCMP should review my file ASAP May 24th is coming fast

"Now doing consulting work, Belliveau still goes back to the oath he swore 36 years ago when he became an RCMP officer.

"Seek the truth, only. That's our job."

Michael Geraldson

Instead of persuing a case that didn't have a very good likelihood of conviction, maybe we should have looked at existing laws regarding owning exotic animals as pets. Nothing can change the tragic loss of those children, but perhaps we have an opportunity here to prevent other senseless deaths.

Anna Lyle

@Michael Geraldson Common sense! Wow, not much of that here today. Too many people feeling emotion over the facts & the laws as they are.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle Perhaps you should intervene in my matter before the Federal Court and stress test my common sense?

Al. Dunn

Such creatures should not be allowed in Canada.. not foreign carp, not iguanas, not tarantulas, and certainly not pythons.

David Raymond Amos

@Al. Dunn The homegrown political animal in me who has no respect for the RCMP whatsoever for very justifiable reasons would like to know why Mr Savioe's lawyer did not return my calls or answer my emails. I contacted him as soon as i read this.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/rcmp-jean-claude-savoie-1.3844985

Anna Lyle

@David Raymond Amos He owes you nothing.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle The Crown certainly does and Savoie's lawyer owes him due diligence

Al. Dunn

Such creatures should not be allowed in Canada.. not foreign carp, not iguanas, not tarantulas, and certainly not pythons.

David Raymond Amos

Anna Lyle

@David Raymond Amos He owes you nothing.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle The Crown certainly does and Savoie's lawyer owes him due diligence

Al. Dunn

Why are NB employers looking to the US for workers? Why not elsewhere in Canada? Why not look for Canadian workers?

David Raymond Amos

@Al. Dunn How is your comment relevant to this article?

Cyril Hurd

No surprise here. High ranking officials (those who don't know what's going on), overrule those do who know what's going on for political reasons. Is malicious prosecution grounds for suing in Canada?

David Raymond Amos

@Cyril Hurd Is malicious prosecution grounds for suing in Canada?

In a word Yes

Noah Hathaway

Why is it that we feel the need to find someone to blame and punish for everything? No laws were broken and no evidence was presented that showed any negligence or a disregard for the lives of the children... It was a horrible accident that I am sure has affected him greatly. So why are people on here still calling for jail time?

Do you really want to live in a world where you can be sent to jail based on public opinion and not the book of law? I don't.

David Raymond Amos

@Noah Hathaway I agree

donna gregoire

....there is an old saying..."an accident waiting to happen"....people need to be held responsible for their reckless actions...owning a python is one such action...

James Reed

@donna gregoire

then owning a dog is a reckless action, any dog - every year people are killed by dogs, mostly children... so we shouldn't keep dogs as pets?

This was an accident, every thousands of people are killed in Canada in car accidents, many of these are because the drive is breaking one law or another, but many are just accidents.

Shawn McShane

@James Reed Dog owners have been charged with .manslaughter and criminal negligence.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/montreal/mother-charged-with-manslaughter-in-dog-attack-1.887821

http://www.thevanguard.ca/news/regional/2011/5/9/dog-owner-charged-with-criminal-negligen-2490675.html

David Raymond Amos

@James Reed Well put sir

David Raymond Amos

@Shawn McShane True but the jury has already decided the truth of this matter. What we should question now is the prosecution of the matter.

Robert Ells

Thank you Mr. Belliveau for stepping out of the box and sharing your story. I guess that's why the public has lost faith and confidence in the RCMP and reflects the vast majority of members opinions siting poor management. Obviously they put more emphasis on public opinion rather than ensuring justice is served.

David Raymond Amos

@Robert Ells I agree

Bernie walsh

The beginning of wisdom is to speak the truth; to call things by the right name; Mr. Bellveau is a very wise man. Thank you

Robert Ells

@Bernie walsh Right on, everyone close to the investigation was on the same page but all get over ruled by a politically correct know nothing. Time has come to start challanging senior management of this national swamp.

David Raymond Amos

@Robert Ells Mr. Bellveau words today are valuable but why did he not speak up during the trial?

Corey Zachedniak

@David Raymond Amos

Could be because he wasn't called as a witness. You can't just stand up and volunteer information. It has to be vetted by both crown and defense.

Anna Lyle

@David Raymond Amos Was he listed as a witness? You don't get to just waltz into a trial and take the stand.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle All he had to do was file an affidavit wit some of his records and serve it on the Crown and the defence counsel

David Raymond Amos

@Corey Zachedniak He was already vetted by the Crown because he worked for it. It was the defence counsel who likely did not know how he could assist them and their client.

Shawn McShane

Why the number of students in N.B. schools is likely to keep shrinking

1) High property taxes residential and commercial
2) Low paying jobs
3) Not enough high paying jobs to keep up with the scandal of high property taxes
4) Company province
5) High heating costs
6) High food costs
7) People leaving for work

David Raymond Amos

@Shawn McShane I believe you are commenting on the wrong webpage

Jeffrey Parker

It's not about the law.It's about people feeling sorry for Savoie and not doing their jobs! Jury included! As for why two kids died from neglect and no one is accountable because system failures, RCMP think they are lawyers and prosecutors instead of fact collectors. Fact is two kids died from dangerous snake no one should have!

Anna Lyle

@Jeffrey Parker Actually it is about the law. Your opinion has more to do with emotion than actually understanding the law. It is a good thing we do not punish based on the court of public opinion in this country.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle Well said

Dave Brown

I love the, 'People did not stay in their lanes.' line.

A leopard does not change its spots.

Once a traffic warden, always a traffic warden.

Robert Ells

@Dave Brown Once an Inspector/Clown/Exhibitionist will always be known as a fool, not a Policeman.

David Raymond Amos

@Dave Brown I understood what the ex RCMP member meant by that statement and I agree with it.Traffic warden or not methinks Belliveau was appropriately pointing his finger at the RCMP boss Commissioner Paulson and telling him it is high time he explain why he is parked in the middle of road impeding the traffic seeking justice instead acting with the scope of his employment. Two months ago Belliveau and his former boss Gallant (whom I have crossed paths with bigtime) would say nothing to CBC about this matter.

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/rcmp-python-deaths-investigation-1.3992656

"What do you mean this is going to the [C]rown?" replied Belliveau, who carried out his own review of the case in February 2014 and concluded Savoie should not be charged.

"Somebody needs to explain this one to me."

In New Brunswick, it is the Crown that ultimately decides whether a person is charged with a criminal offence.

Gallant and Belliveau are now retired from the RCMP. Gallant deferred a request for information to RCMP communications in Fredericton. Attempts to contact Belliveau were unsuccessful."

My humble opinion in an a nutshell about this matter in particular is that whereas Paulson was politically appointed he was merely playing politics rather poorly in an effort to support Harper's tough on crime agenda.

However anyone can Google my name and that of Paulson and Gallant to see why I figure they were trying to get something else in the news about the RCMP instead of Paulson's poor investigation of the murders on the the Highway of Tears when he was just a Cpl, the illegal seizure High River guns, how protesters. against fracking in NB were treated,Duffy payola, wiretap tapes of the mob, sexual harassment and suicides of RCMP of fellow members etc etc etc

Willie Smith

Was it a preventable accident??? If yes then it should have been manslaughter.... Then it should go to a sentencing... 0 years to 10 years... That is the question the jury should have grappled with... If you drive and speed and kill someone then it is manslaughter.. It was preventable.. 0 to 10 years... Should have had that latch checked and locked?? negligent especially with 2 kids sleeping over....

Anna Lyle

@Willie Smith All accidents are preventable. That is why they are called accidents.

David Raymond Amos @Anna Lyle

definition
accident aksədənt/
noun: accident; plural noun: accidents

"an unfortunate incident that happens unexpectedly and unintentionally, typically resulting in damage or injury."

In 1990 I not long after I pulled off the highway on my old bike into Seligman Arizona a woman who was driving down the same Highway was suddenly swept off the road by a gush of water from a storm north of us. her car was crammed upside down in a culvert and she drowned.

Methinks she died in tragic accident that could not have been predicted or prevented. If I had been there at that point in time it would have me instead of her. Luck of the draw I thought as they towed her car into town. However I may have survived because I was on a bike instead of being tramped in a car. Either way I likely would have surfaced dead or alive in the next county because it was Hell of Storm that landed in town shortly thereafter.

Paul Stephenson

This is very typical of the RCMP.They have so much history over either poor investigations like the Pickton case keeping their heads in the sand while the killings were going on, Surrey Six and sleeping with Gangsters girlfriends and so many political charges.Lets also not forget the Clifton case and the supervisor holding back on overtime know he may and did kill again.Top Management is very pathological in its structure and shopping for an answer to meet political targets.It is such a shame Canada lets that organisation use their power beyond fairness to the laws and constitution for civilians.With all this history they don't learn and in my opinion that organisation should be pushed out of every city due to the fact they cannot be trusted

David Raymond Amos

@Paul Stephenson Perhaps you should attend the upcoming hearing in the Federal Court of Appeal in Fredericton on May 24th right after we celebrate the birthday of the boss of the RCMP.

Jonas Smith

Donnie A needs to not only stay in his lane, but out of the public eye too.

David Raymond Amos

@Jonas Smith You are referring to a certain Mr Arsenault I presume

Harold Bay

If Pythons were not allowed in Canada those two boys would not have suffered such horrible deaths. If Pitt Bulls were not allowed in Canada, people would not be torn to shreds by Pitt Bulls. We have laws on owning and storing hand grenades and guess what? We don't have to worry about hand grenades going off and killing our children. Mind you if hand grenades were made legal there are nut jobs that would want them.
Our politicians are not doing their jobs.

Anna Lyle

@Harold Bay You can not put laws in place to prevent every conceivable tragedy. Sometimes bad things happen, despite the best efforts of those involved.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle I concur

John Savard

He owned a dangerous snake. The ventilation slot on the top of its enclosure was not narrow enough; it was able to crawl out. That should have been enough to put him away, so that the deaths of those two innocent boys would not be in vain, but instead would bring about a situation in which that kind of incident would never happen again.

A death occurred, so the presumption should be that it was due to culpability of some sort.

Anna Lyle

@John Savard That's ridiculous. There was no malicious intent.

David Raymond Amos

@Anna Lyle True

'People did not stay in their lanes': ex-RCMP investigator reflects on python case

Gerry Belliveau still doesn't know why Jean-Claude Savoie was charged in the deaths of Campbellton boys

By Alan White, CBC News Posted: Apr 18, 2017 6:00 AM AT

Gerry Belliveau is now retired after a 36-year career with the RCMP. His final assignment was to review the force's investigation into the deaths of two boys in Campbellton who were killed by a python in 2013. (CBC )

In a 36-year career in the RCMP — spent mostly as a criminal investigator with 15 years heading the major crime unit in southeast New Brunswick — Gerry Belliveau had never been overruled by a superior when it came to charging or not charging a suspect.

Then came his final assignment.

With a mere three weeks to go before his retirement in March 2014, Belliveau, who was then the acting superintendent for southeast New Brunswick, was asked by top-ranking officers at J Division headquarters in Fredericton if he would review the findings of the investigation into the August 2013 deaths of two young brothers in Campbellton who were asphyxiated by a snake.

Connor Barthe, 6, and Noah Barthe, 4, were killed by asphyxiation by an African rock python on Aug. 5, 2013. (Mandy Trecartin/Twitter)

The initial investigation by the major crime unit in northern New Brunswick had concluded a charge of criminal negligence causing death was not warranted against Jean-Claude Savoie, owner of the African rock python. Officers from H Division in Nova Scotia who reviewed the case agreed.

Despite his looming retirement, Belliveau locked himself into a motel room in Bathurst for a week, with two boxes of investigative files, and reviewed the findings in the case.

To keep an open mind, he never looked at the H Division review, but he came to the same conclusion: a charge of criminal negligence causing the deaths of Connor Barthe, 6, and Noah Barthe, 4, "just wasn't there," said Belliveau.

The boys were on a sleepover at Savoie's apartment when the 3.8-metre-long snake escaped through a small ventilation duct at the top of its exclosure. The snake then fell through the ceiling tiles in the adjoining room where the boys were sleeping and killed them by constriction.

Information Morning - Moncton

Campbellton python death charges

00:00 13:49

Belliveau remains adamant there was nothing to show that Savoie showed reckless disregard for the safety of others or that his actions were a marked departure from what other people would do in the same situation.

Hence, no criminal offence occurred.

Belliveau submitted his report at 10 p.m. on a Friday. On Monday, Roger Brown, the assistant commissioner who headed J Division, told him Commissioner Bob Paulson was going to be briefed on the file.

Belliveau was asked if he stood by his report and was prepared to speak about it to Paulson.

Less than 24 hours after RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson was briefed on the killing of two boys by a python in Campbellton in 2013, the RCMP pursued a charge of criminal negligence causing death against the snake's owner. (Patrick Doyle/the Toronto Star)

"Absolutely," said Belliveau.

He never spoke to Paulson but the morning after the commissioner was briefed, Belliveau got an email from the original investigator, saying the case was being forwarded to the Crown to pursue a criminal charge against Savoie.

Surprising move

"I was stunned," said Belliveau, 60, who is now retired. "People did not stay in their lanes.

"If three people say that the colour is red and you've got one person that says the colour is white, maybe the three people that said the colour was red were on the right track."

Jean-Claude Savoie was found not guilty of criminal negligence causing the deaths of brothers Connor and Noah Barthe, who were asphyxiated by Savoie's African rock python. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

While the Crown officially approves charges in New Brunswick, if the RCMP didn't want a charge laid, the case would not have gone to the Crown, he said. You need evidence for a charge.

'By taking the monkey off our back and giving it to somebody else, it's not the solution.' - Gerry Belliveau, retired RCMP inspector

"All I can suggest to you today is that we, the RCMP — I'm retired now, but the RCMP at that time — took the monkey off their back and gave it to the Crown.

"In my opinion, it was a no-win situation and the results speak for themselves."

Savoie was found not guilty of criminal negligence causing death in a jury trial in Campbellton last fall.

Belliveau said Supt. Dan Nowlan, who headed the RCMP in northeast New Brunswick "did not accept the decisions or the investigative results of a major crime unit, the Halifax division or Belliveau.

Supt. Dan Nowlan is in charge of the RCMP in northeast New Brunswick. (RCMP)

"And with all fairness, with all due respect to the commissioner of the RCMP who is still the commissioner today, what was his background and what was his knowledge of this investigation? ... How does a member's reasonable and probable grounds change from a Friday to a Monday and who read the file of the two boxes of information to come up with that decision?""

Belliveau said that in the RCMP, as in any organization, people are responsible for certain jobs. Here, some people got involved where they shouldn't have

'People don't mind their own business'

An exhibit from the criminal negligence trial of Jean-Claude Savoie showing the African rock python from his Reptile Ocean pet store in Campbellton. (Court of Queen's Bench/Canadian Press)

Belliveau doesn't begrudge superiors their authority to make decisions, and said they might be looking at things from a different angle. But they should still be accountable.

"Regardless of who makes decisions or who changes decisions from lower, they still need to wear and carry the responsibility that comes with it."

Paulson did not reply to an interview request. Nowlan declined an interview through RCMP spokesperson Paul Greene.

"On the matter itself, the RCMP's response is the same as it has been previously," Greene said in an email to CBC News. "The RCMP gathered evidence and presented it to the Crown recommending charges. Charges were then laid and the case went to court. We respect the judge and jury's decision."

'You can't invent the answers'

Belliveau said he understands the "passion" of Nowlan, and perhaps others, in wanting to see a charge laid in a high-profile, tragic case.

'You can't invent the answers … you can't.' - Gerry Belliveau, retired RCMP

"It was highly charged and the public wanted some answers," Belliveau said. "But you can't invent the answers … you can't."

He has "never received the courtesy of a phone call" about why it was ultimately decided to charge Savoie.
"What changed? And who made that decision? Can he back up the decision? Can he justify the decision? Was anybody pressured?" he said. "Because to this very day, I still don't know why he was charged."

RCMP's handling of python case challenged by Jean-Claude Savoie's lawyer

Now doing consulting work, Belliveau still goes back to the oath he swore 36 years ago when he became an RCMP officer.

"Seek the truth, only. That's our job."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/rcmp-python-deaths-investigation-1.3992656

RCMP boss briefed about python deaths hours before decision about charge changed

Snake's owner charged with criminal negligence causing death despite 3 RCMP opinions charge was not warranted

By Alan White, CBC News Posted: Feb 27, 2017 6:00 AM AT

RCMP Commissioner Bob Paulson asked for a personal briefing into the investigation into the deaths of Noah and Connor Barthe, who were killed by a python in 2013. (Adrian Wyld/Canadian Press)

Canada's top Mountie was briefed on the investigation into the 2013 killing of two boys by a large python in Campbellton, N.B., just hours before the RCMP changed direction and decided to pursue criminal charges against the snake's owner, according to documents obtained by CBC News under the federal Access to Information Act.

The documents show "the commissioner" requested a personal briefing in February 2014 on the investigation into the deaths of Connor and Noah Barthe in August 2013.

The brothers, aged 6 and 4, were killed by a 3.8-metre long African rock python at a friend's house on a sleepover.

At the time, Bob Paulson was the commissioner of the RCMP and continues to hold that position.

The initial investigation, a review of that investigation by RCMP in Nova Scotia, and a second review by the acting district commander for the RCMP in southeast New Brunswick all concluded that python owner Jean-Claude Savoie should not be charged.

All felt it could not be proven Savoie showed wanton and reckless disregard for the safety of others or that his actions were a marked departure from the actions of anyone in a similar situation.

But fewer than 24 hours after a high-ranking RCMP officer in New Brunswick spent 30 minutes on the telephone explaining to Paulson why a charge of criminal negligence causing death was not warranted, the RCMP decided to forward the case to the Crown prosecutor to pursue a charge, the documents show.

Connor Barthe, 6, and Noah Barthe, 4, were asphyxiated by an African rock python on Aug. 5, 2013. (Mandy Trecartin/Twitter)

At 9:30 p.m. on Feb. 17, 2014, Chief Supt. Wayne Gallant, the RCMP officer in charge of criminal operations in New Brunswick, sent an email to other officers stating: "Commissioner having all the same reservations as we all have with this file.

"Spent the last half hour on the phone trying to explain why this does not meet the threshold for [criminal negligence]. Will know tomorrow what he wants to do and I will advise."

The following day at 11:51 a.m., Cpl. Gabriel Deveau, who led the initial investigation and recommended no charges, wrote to Insp. Gerry Belliveau, the acting district commander in southeast New Brunswick, "I am informed the file is being submitted to a Crown."

'What do you mean this is going to the [C]rown? Somebody needs to explain this one to me.' - Insp. Gerry Belliveau, acting commander for RCMP in southeast New Brunswick

"What do you mean this is going to the [C]rown?" replied Belliveau, who carried out his own review of the case in February 2014 and concluded Savoie should not be charged.

"Somebody needs to explain this one to me."

In New Brunswick, it is the Crown that ultimately decides whether a person is charged with a criminal offence.

Gallant and Belliveau are now retired from the RCMP. Gallant deferred a request for information to RCMP communications in Fredericton. Attempts to contact Belliveau were unsuccessful.

A request was also made by CBC News to interview Paulson about the information in the documents. He declined.

Found not guilty

Savoie, 40, stood trial for criminal negligence causing death in the fall of 2016.

A jury of four men and seven women found him not guilty after an eight-day trial that concluded on Nov. 9. The Crown chose not to appeal.

Jean-Claude Savoie was found not guilty of criminal negligence causing the deaths of Noah and Connor Barthe in August 2013. (Andrew Vaughan/Canadian Press)

The python escaped through a ventilation pipe in the ceiling of its enclosure in Savoie's apartment. The weight of the 24-kilogram snake then caused the ceiling tiles in the adjoining living room, where the boys were sleeping, to collapse.

"Snake scared when fell," states the handwritten notes of an investigator.

"This wasn't self-defence by snake."

The trial heard Savoie saw the snake try to escape on an earlier occasion, but it did not get all the way through the ventilation pipe, which was smaller in diameter.

The trial also heard that the dryer-like vent cover for the pipe was not secured and often on the enclosure floor.

Savoie did not testify, but his lawyer argued the failed escape attempt reassured Savoie the snake could not get out through the pipe because of its size, so there was no need to secure the vent cover.

The trial also heard the boys had spent the day playing with animals at Savoie's father's farm, where Savoie raised rabbits and other animals to feed the snake.

The smell of the animals on the boys may have led the snake to think the boys were prey, the trial heard.

Savoie assured of no charge

At the conclusion of the trial, a publication ban was lifted on documents showing that Deveau, the lead investigator in the initial investigation, had given written assurance to Savoie's lawyer that Savoie would not be charged if Savoie answered four questions for the RCMP.

Defence lawyer Leslie Machim objected to the charging of Savoie after the RCMP gave written assurance he would not be. (CBC)

Savoie's lawyer, Leslie Matchim, argued that charging his client after giving written assurance that he wouldn't be charged was a violation of Savoie's constitutional right to remain silent to police and tried to have the case thrown out.

His motion was denied, but the answers provided by Savoie were not allowed as evidence.

The initial investigation ended Nov. 22, 2013, with Deveau and Staff Sgt. Rick Potvin of the major crime unit signing off on a report that said the findings don't support an offence of criminal negligence causing death.

A briefing note about the investigation and decision not to pursue a charge was submitted to Paulson on Nov. 25, 2013.

Deveau's investigation was then reviewed by RCMP Cpl. M.R. Simms and Cpl. L.L. Cote from H Division in Nova Scotia. The investigation review dated Dec. 10, 2013, agreed with Deveau.

"We agree with Cpl. Deveau and no criminal charges are warranted in this matter," it states.

3rd review

Emails show Belliveau did a third review of the file in February 2014 and also concluded a charge against Savoie was not warranted.

"Simply put, I do not see the elements of a Criminal Negligence," Belliveau wrote to Gallant on Feb. 13, 2014.

"I am very confident that the [C]rown would agree with me."

Meanwhile, on Feb. 5, 2014, RCMP Insp. Marc Bertrand of Tracadie was appointed the lead investigator in the case, according to an affidavit by Bertrand that was submitted to the Court of Queen's Bench on April 5, 2016.

In his affidavit, Bertrand said he believed a charge against Savoie was warranted.

"After my review of said file and of the evidence available, I came to the conclusion that reasonable and probable grounds did in fact exist to charge the Applicant of a criminal offence under paragraph 226(b) of the Criminal Code and I then send, with the support of my superiors, the file to the Crown for consideration."

It appears Bertrand misstated the section of the Criminal Code in his affidavit, since Section 226(b) is a charge related to the acceleration of death, where a person causes a bodily injury that results in death.

Criminal negligence causing death is Section 220(b) and is referred to by Bertrand at another point in his affidavit.

Bertrand said he was present for meetings of the provincial Attorney General's case consultation and risk management committee on Sept. 4, 2014 and Dec. 2, 2014. That committee ultimately decided there was enough evidence to justify charging Savoie.

In his affidavit, Bertrand also said Deveau was not authorized to give immunity to Savoie.

The documents provided by the RCMP include one that is unsigned and in French that makes the case for a charge of criminal negligence, upon which Belliveau wrote comments in English disputing some of the points.

For example, where the author states in French that Savoie's failure to secure the ventilation system showed a significant departure from what others would do, Belliveau writes: "Wrong. It does not meet the threshold!"

At the bottom of the memo, Belliveau writes: "When you look at the totality of the file, these points in combination with everything else amount to very little to support [for criminal negligence].

"On the other hand, plenty of info does support due diligence whether we like or dislike the owner.

"We do not have close to any evidence to support a charge."

http://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/new-brunswick/rcmp-jean-claude-savoie-1.3844985

RCMP's handling of python case challenged by Jean-Claude Savoie's lawyer

Police reneged on written assurance snake owner wouldn't be charged if he answered 4 questions

By Alan White, CBC News Posted: Nov 10, 2016 12:28 PM AT

Defence lawyer Leslie Matchim, above, called it 'egregious' that snake owner Jean-Claude Savoie was charged with criminal negligence in the deaths of two boys after the RCMP guaranteed there would be no charges. (CBC)

Jean-Claude Savoie's lawyer says the RCMP violated his client's constitutional rights by filing a criminal charge against him after giving written assurance Savoie would not be charged in relation to his python's killing of two young boys in Campbellton in 2013.

Savoie was found not guilty by a jury Wednesday on the charge of criminal negligence causing death that was eventually laid by the RCMP.

With the verdict, a publication ban was lifted on an April 2016 motion by Savoie's lawyers to have the court issue a stay of proceedings in the case because of what the defence called misconduct by the police and Crown.

At issue was the lead investigator in Phase 1 of the investigation, Cpl. Gabriel Deveau, who gave defence lawyer Leslie Matchim written confirmation Savoie would not be charged in the case if Savoie answered four questions for the RCMP.

Jean-Claude Savoie leaves a Campbellton courtroom after his not guilty verdict is delivered. (CBC)

Savoie provided the answers to the police in writing through his lawyer.

Under Section 7 of the Charter of Rights and Freedoms, a person under investigation has the right to remain silent and is under no obligation to answer questions from police.

Initial investigation

The initial investigation ended Nov. 22, 2013, with Deveau and Staff Sgt. Rick Potvin, who headed the RCMP's major crime unit in northern New Brunswick, both signing off on a report that stated "the investigation does not support an offence of causing death by criminal negligence."

The file was then subjected to a review by RCMP major crime investigators in Halifax. They eventually confirmed the decision made by the New Brunswick investigators not to proceed with charges and signed off on the file on Jan. 23, 2014.

Then, on Feb. 5, Insp. Marc Bertrand of J Division RCMP in New Brunswick was assigned to do a second review of the investigation.

"No explanation has been forthcoming to fill the lacuna Jan. 23, 2014, and Feb. 5, 2014," noted Court of Queen's Bench Justice Frederick Ferguson in his July 26, 2016, ruling.

"There is no explanation why it was that Insp. Bertrand was tasked with reopening the file."

Connor Barthe, 6, and Noah Barthe, 4, were killed by asphyxiation by an African rock python on Aug. 5, 2013. (Mandy Trecartin/Twitter)

Bertrand determined there was sufficient evidence to have Savoie charged with criminal negligence causing death.

Matchim's argument was that Savoie's right to a fair trial had been irrevocably prejudiced.

Ferguson stated Matchim's position was that the RCMP's breach of its guarantee not to launch a prosecution "is so offensive to societal notions of fair play and decency and egregious" that proceeding with the trial would be harmful to the repute of the administration of justice.

The 4 questions

The four questions put to Savoie by Deveau were:

Upon discovering the tragic scene that morning, what did you do and in what order?

Did you move any items in the living room (i.e. mattresses, blankets, fallen ceiling tiles, ventilation pipes, etc.)
At what point that morning did you unlock the door to the enclosure?
First responders have noted seeing you with blood on your hands when they first arrived and you were outside. Can you explain where the blood came from?

Savoie answered the questions in writing in the third person through Matchim.

"The parties agree that the answers to the questions put did not lead to any derivative evidence being gathered by investigators," Ferguson says his the ruling. "The answers did not affect the decision that Cpl. Deveau had taken to close the investigation without laying any criminal charges."

Bertrand stated in an affidavit he was brought in by his superiors to re-evaluate the file.

Answers had no influence

Bertrand also stated Deveau's questions and Savoie's answers had no influence on his final opinion that grounds existed to charge Savoie with criminal negligence causing death.

Bertand also stated Deveau gave the written confirmation there would be no charges against Savoie without the consent of his superiors and it was beyond Deveau's authority to do so since such a guarantee could only be authorized by the attorney general of the province.

Obviously, Ferguson denied Matchim's motion to halt proceedings, clearing the way for the trial that took place in Campbellton starting Oct. 31. The answers provided by Savoie to police were not to be used in the trial by all parties.

Vindication for Matchim came with Wednesday's not guilty verdict by the jury of seven women and four men.

"I hope it bears some more scrutiny by someone," Matchim said.

"To me, it's all very unsatisfactory."

David Raymond Amos Round 3

Tuesday, 18 April 2017

Oh My seems that the CBC has put Bobby Paulson of the boss of the RCMP in hot water before he retires.

'People did not stay in their lanes': ex-RCMP investigator reflects on python case

'People did not stay in their lanes': ex-RCMP investigator reflects on python case

Gerry Belliveau still doesn't know why Jean-Claude Savoie was charged in the deaths of Campbellton boys

Surprising move

'People don't mind their own business'

'You can't invent the answers'

RCMP boss briefed about python deaths hours before decision about charge changed

Snake's owner charged with criminal negligence causing death despite 3 RCMP opinions charge was not warranted

Found not guilty

Savoie assured of no charge

3rd review

RCMP's handling of python case challenged by Jean-Claude Savoie's lawyer

Police reneged on written assurance snake owner wouldn't be charged if he answered 4 questions

Initial investigation

The 4 questions

Answers had no influence

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