Court hears that alleged jail assault ringleader had strong influence on N.S. inmates – Halifax | Globalnews.ca

A Nova Scotia courtroom heard today that the man accused of leading a brutal Halifax jail assault had allegedly boasted he could set off a jailhouse riot with a single phone call.

Prosecutors are attempting to have Brian James Marriott designated a dangerous offender by demonstrating to a Nova Scotia Supreme Court judge he poses a high risk of committing more violent offences.

Marriott was convicted in 2021 of aggravated assault in the Dec. 2, 2019, beating and stabbing of inmate Stephen Anderson at the Central Nova Scotia Correctional Facility.

Jeffrey Awalt, a training manager for Nova Scotia jails, read today from a report saying that on Aug. 27, 2019, Marriott had to be subdued with large amounts of pepper spray after being told he would be moved to an isolated cell.

Prosecutor Scott Morrison read from a separate report written by another jail officer, who said Marriott told her he could make a phone call and set off “a disturbance” among other inmates.

Nathan Gorham, Marriott’s lawyer, told Justice Jamie Campbell that many of the reports read in court rely on second-hand accounts, adding that he intends to challenge their validity.

Gorham told the court he’s going to argue that Marriott doesn’t pose a risk significantly greater than the risk posed by other inmates and that his client shouldn’t be designated a dangerous offender.

This report by The Canadian Press was first published Jan. 17, 2023.