Lawyer of man charged in standoff argues client’s legal responsibility

By MEDICINE HAT NEWS on June 29, 2022.

https://www.medicinehatnews.com@MedicineHatNews

The lawyer for a Medicine Hat man charged with firing a gun during a standoff with police is seeking a determination of whether his client can be held legally responsible.

Attorney Justin Dean told Medicine Hat Provincial Court on Tuesday he is arranging to have his client Barry Reed, 67, assessed to determine his mental fitness to stand trial.

Reed is on bail but limited to residing at an assisted-living facility in Saskatchewan following a lengthy stay in Calgary hospital.

He was charged in early January with 23 offences, including assault with a weapon, making threats to cause harm, recklessly discharging a gun and pointing a firearm. The presence of a gun requires a mandatory minimum sentence of no less than five years in prison if found guilty.

The particulars of how the Alberta court can order and receive an assessment done in Saskatchewan jurisdiction is to be worked out by Dean’s office before the matter appears again in docket court next week.

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