Dangerous offender hearing for Jimmy Melvin Jr. derailed

A dangerous offender hearing for notorious Halifax crime figure Jimmy Melvin Jr. has been derailed, just four days before it was scheduled to begin.

Melvin was convicted of attempted murder on Oct. 5, 2017 in connection with an unsuccessful plot in 2008 to kill Terry Marriott Jr., another well-known local crime figure.

Following his conviction, the Crown served notice it would seek to have Melvin designated a dangerous offender, which — if successful — would mean that he could be locked up indefinitely.

But on Thursday, Melvin's lawyers — Pat Atherton and Michelle James — told Nova Scotia Supreme Court Justice Peter Rosinski that their client was now looking for a new lawyer.

James and Atherton said they had been unable to meet with Melvin to discuss what was wrong.

Melvin told the judge it was the fact he hadn't heard from his lawyers in some time that prompted his search for new counsel.

'I'm being bounced around'

He told Rosinski he didn't blame the lawyers, but rather the Correctional Service of Canada for moving him through various institutions, making it difficult for him to be found.

Atherton and James had made a similar complaint earlier in the process, saying a psychiatrist they had hired to assess Melvin had been unable to meet with their client because he couldn't find which prison he was in.

At that time, Melvin told the court he'd been shuffled through prisons in Saskatchewan, Manitoba, Quebec and New Brunswick.

"I'm being bounced around and juggled," Melvin said on Thursday.

The psychiatrist has still not been able to meet with Melvin.

Rosinski asked the two defence lawyers whether they would be willing to continue on the case as amicus, or "friends of the court," which means they could provide assistance if needed.

Judge raises concerns

Atherton said that was impossible because they had been told things in confidence while representing Melvin that would place them in a conflict of interest if they continued in a different capacity.

This is not the first time in this case that Melvin and his lawyer have parted ways.

He fired Pat MacEwan part way through his trial. Yarmouth lawyer Phil Starr took over at the conclusion of the trial, but was unable to make the time commitment for a dangerous offender hearing. That's when Atherton and James came on board.

"I am very concerned that a pattern is emerging here that when things are going to go badly, he hits the emergency exit button," Rosinski said Thursday.

But the judge also acknowledged that the dangerous offender hearing is too complicated for Melvin to represent himself.

"This is a really big deal. This is my life," Melvin told the judge.

He continues to maintain his innocence and said his defence would involve 1,000 witnesses from jails who could attest to that.

Melvin is to return to court next week to update the judge on his search for a new lawyer.