Witnesses' videotaped statements allowed at Haiart trial

Videotaped statements made to policecan be played in court in lieu of witness testimony at the trial of a man charged with second-degree murder in the death of Phil Haiart, a Winnipeg judge has ruled.

Queen's Bench Justice Albert Clearwater told the jury he'd considered and ultimately granted an application to allow the admission of certain evidence "notnormally entered at trial."

But he urged the jurors several times to view the statements with caution, noting "the right to cross-examine has been deprived of this accused by the actions of the three witnesses who refused to testify."

The jury was told they would see three videotaped statements that Jammal Jacob, Cory Amyotte and Gharib Abdullah made to police about the events surrounding the shooting of Haiart and another man in October 2005.

Prosecutors allege Haiart and a friend, who was also shot, inadvertently walked into a gang-related shooting.

Earlier this month, Jacob, Amyotte and Abdullah refused to take an oath or swear to tell the truth or testify at the trial.

Each was convicted of contempt of court. Jacob was immediately sentenced to three years in prison. Amyotte and Abdullah have yet to be sentenced.

Jacob's statement was played Tuesday afternoon in the court.

In it, he describes a gunfight that broke out the night before the shooting, at the same location where Haiart was shot.

The gunfight involved Jacob, another gang member, another man named Jeffrey Cansanay, and the accused, who cannot be named because he was a minor at the time, Jacob said on the tape.

Clearwater has previously told the jury that the three men's refusals to testify and their convictions for contempt are not relevant to the accused in the Haiart trial.