Wayne Millard Murder Trial - Dellen Millard Charged With Murder - #1

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 8m8 minutes ago
We're now underway. Another matter is being heard quickly in the courtroom this morning before our trial gets going. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 7m7 minutes ago
Pillay is now up. He's saying he has some issues with Dr. Evans' time of death statement yesterday. He says he regrets not objecting yesterday. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 6m6 minutes ago
If you were following yesterday, Evans first said he couldn't give a firm time of death -- but then later said Millard had been dead for at least 18 hours. The Crown says they won't be relying on Evans' evidence heavily on the single point. #Millard

 

[Grey-St]

Yes that’s interesting. People in stressful situations tend to fidget, or shake their legs or shift in their seats. I can imagine being interviewed by police under oath after finding your father shot in the face would be a rather uncomfortable situation. He isn’t doing anything that people normally do when they are uncomfortable. He didn’t even undo his jacket. Shouldn’t he be stressed and hot? Omg, if I got interviewed by police after finding someone dead I would be a mess, even if it was a total stranger, never mind a family member.

I would definitely be rubbing my forehead, and shaking my head, in a "how did this happen" manner. Does he even sip any water? I haven't watched the whole video yet.

 

[FastLikeLight]

Looked only the short version - the calmest person on the world after finding his dad and business partner dead. No emotions of the loss.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 6m6 minutes ago
Retired Toronto police detective James Hutcheon is now back up for cross-examination. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Pillay is again going back to Hutcheon's notes. He says he didn't have his notebook at the start of the investigation. He went straight to the scene as he started work, and didn't have his notebook. He says he made notes on a loose piece of paper he had in the car. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Hutcheon says there's "nothing of importance" in his notes -- just names, phone numbers, some observations. He says he didn't write down any conversations verbatim. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 3m3 minutes ago
Hutcheon and Pillay are now talking over each other. The judge is cautioning them to let each other finish. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 2m2 minutes ago
"This explanation you've given us now, you didn't say it yesterday, fair?" Pillay says. Hutcheon says he's recalling more information about the events of that night today. #Millard

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 5m5 minutes ago
Hutcheon says he has a recollection of what Millard said to him at his father's home the night of his death -- but he didn't take verbatim notes. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Hutcheon says he didn't have a lot of interaction with Millard at the Maple Gate residence. Pillay keeps saying he did. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 2m2 minutes ago
Hutcheon says he transferred notes from a loose pice of paper he had at the home to his official police memo pad later that night, on the night Wayne Millard died. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 1m1 minute ago
Hutcheon says he wrote some notes in his memo book when he went back to the police station, at one point, before going back to the Maple Gate residence. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 3s3 seconds ago
Hutcheon says he wasn't there that night to interview every witness, but to instruct other officers working the scene and make sure the work that needed to be done, got done. #Millard

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Pillay says his notes are "totally silent" on the fact that he wrote some of them at a later date from "It's not a transcript," Hutcheon says. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 3m3 minutes ago
"You don't put, late entry," Pillay says. "It's not a late entry sir, it's an investigation," Hutcheon says. His voice is rising a bit. It seems like he's frustrated that this is a sticking point. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 2m2 minutes ago
"We write them when it's appropriate to write them," Hutcheon says. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 10s10 seconds ago
Pillay is now suggesting that Hutcheon didn't record his notes when he went back to the station. Hutcheon says he did. "Sir that's a suggestion. That's not evidence," he says. #Millard

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC now24 seconds ago
Of note: Pillay is going really hard at this witness about his recollection and the strength of his notes. Hutcheon is also the first witness to testify that he found Millard's death suspicious. #Millard

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 2m2 minutes ago
"I take it that between 11:52 p.m. on the 29th of November and 1:17 a.m., you have no evidence to give about where my client is, correct?" Pillay says. "I don't think I do," Hutcheon says, adding that he was more concerned with Wayne Millard at this point. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 41s41 seconds ago
Pillay is now talking about the video statements that were given. Millard's mother gave one first, but Hutcheon went back to the scene before interviewing Millard, because the coroner had come back there. Millard's statement was then taken after this. #Millard

 

[JuneBug67]

Yes that’s interesting. People in stressful situations tend to fidget, or shake their legs or shift in their seats. I can imagine being interviewed by police under oath after finding your father shot in the face would be a rather uncomfortable situation. He isn’t doing anything that people normally do when they are uncomfortable. He didn’t even undo his jacket. Shouldn’t he be stressed and hot? Omg, if I got interviewed by police after finding someone dead I would be a mess, even if it was a total stranger, never mind a family member.

That completely deadened fear response is typical of sociopaths. Their brains have little or none of what keeps the rest of us in line - the capacity for normal fear, guilt etc. It's so strange to see it play out in front of you though. He's just so "off" in ways that are subtle but unmistakable.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 1m1 minute ago
"You're relying heavily on your memo book to give your evidence, fair?" Pillay says. Hutcheon says no, he's checking for details, but has his own recollection. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 1m1 minute ago
Hutcheon is now clearly frustrated. "I don't know why you keep asking me the same questions," Hutcheon says. The judge steps in, and starts cautioning him, and calls him "Officer" as she does. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 55s56 seconds ago
Hutcheon then responds, "Excuse me ma'am, I'm a civilian now," he says to the judge. She is now cautioning him again -- calmly, but firmly. "If a question is inappropriate, I'll deal with it," she says. #Millard

 

[JuneBug67]

DM says WM would go through a 40 oz-er in two weeks?? And this was a raging alcoholic?? Not to diminish the problems that come with alcoholism which have nothing to do with amounts, but he also said that his dad only drank late at night - nothing in the day. So an old lonely guy living with his dysfunctional adult son wants to drink 3oz of whiskey at night and this is a problem? jmo

It was kind of weird - the officer offered a 40 in response to DM's "what's bigger than a 26?", but DM's gestures seemed to describe a bottle more the size of a Texas mickey. If you drank a lot and were frugal, you might go for an economy size.

 

[Shaz14]

I feel bad for Hutcheon. He hasn't even heard the testimony of the other witnesses, if he had I bet he would wish that he had been as oblivious as the rest of them.

I understand why Pillay is doing what he is doing, but he isn't making a lot of sense to me. I think in this particular case the cop was doing his job the way he is supposed to. Pillay is trying to make him look dumb but it isn't working on me.

 

[Ontario Mom]

I am just starting the video over again and when he talks about it being strange that his father was still in bed he says something along the lines that something seemed unusual about how still he was sleeping??? Has he never seen people sleep before? People are still when they sleep. Maybe if he was a loud snorer normally then it would seem odd if he wasn’t snoring. If I found my husband or dad in bed and they weren’t snoring I would definitely be checking on them, but if I found my mom or my brother in bed being still, I would just assume they were sleeping.

Also, wasn’t his father in bed a lot? I thought he was unwell and spent a lot of time in his room. If he is an alcoholic who stays up talking to his new girlfriend at all hours of the night and is taking pain killers then it wouldn’t surprise me if I found him in bed napping.

I thought it sounded weird too when he mentioned how "still" he was. To me this is just another tell of his. He needed the detectives to believe that he was just innocently checking on his dad. Also, and this likely doesn't matter in the least but it really did strike me a strange that DM said he was concerned because it was so late in the afternoon. I don't know what planet he's from, but at 6:30pm at the end of November it's as dark outside as it's going to get, and we don't call that "afternoon" - that's evening. Last, if we can believe anything DM says, WM was bed-ridden for a short time about 7-9 months before his death, when he hurt his back. He was (at the time of his death) fairly mobile, driving himself places and getting around in the house okay.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC now44 seconds ago
Pillay is now saying he didn't have his notebook at all at the scene. "At no point in time did you have your notebook at the Maple Gate residence" Pillay says. Hutcheon says he did. Both Crown attorneys are talking to each other as this is going on. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Pillay says he's now handing Hutcheon some pieces of paper. He says one of them is the piece of paper he took out of his car at the start of the night to make notes. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 42s42 seconds ago
"There's nothing there about dealing with my client, correct?" Pillay asks. Hutcheon spends a few minutes looking through them, as the courtroom is silent. "No sir, there is not." Pillay says there's nothing about #Millard's appearance or demeanour in there. Hutcheon agrees.

 

[Shaz14]

I thought it sounded weird too when he mentioned how "still" he was. To me this is just another tell of his. He needed the detectives to believe that he was just innocently checking on his dad. Also, and this likely doesn't matter in the least but it really did strike me a strange that DM said he was concerned because it was so late in the afternoon. I don't know what planet he's from, but at 6:30pm at the end of November it's as dark outside as it's going to get, and we don't call that "afternoon" - that's evening. Last, if we can believe anything DM says, WM was bed-ridden for a short time about 7-9 months before his death, when he hurt his back. He was (at the time of his death) fairly mobile, driving himself places and getting around in the house okay.

Yeah, him calling it the afternoon is odd too, especially since he was also coming home from work. Most people would call that evening or even night. If I'm going out for dinner on Friday, I would say I have dinner plans Friday night. To me anything past 5pm is evening or night depending on the situation.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 7m7 minutes ago
Pillay is suggesting that Hutcheon told Millard and Burns they couldn't leave until they had given their statements. Hutcheon says that's incorrect. Pillay now saying Hutcheon told Millards mother she wasn't allowed to go get her heart medication on the night #Millard senior died

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 6m6 minutes ago
Hutcheon again says that's incorrect, and accuses Pillay of "making up evidence." The judge again has to caution him. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 5m5 minutes ago
Hutcheon says at the time, he wasn't investigating a murder -- it was a sudden death. If it was a homicide investigation, his duties would have been "more stringent and important," he says. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Pillay says if this was a murder investigation, the scene would have been been protected. Hutcheon says the scene where Millard's body was found was kept in a state of "minimal contamination." #Millard

 

[Velma]

Also, and this likely doesn't matter in the least but it really did strike me a strange that DM said he was concerned because it was so late in the afternoon. I don't know what planet he's from, but at 6:30pm at the end of November it's as dark outside as it's going to get, and we don't call that "afternoon" - that's evening.

I had the same reaction to the word afternoon. For example, when I’m at work I often don’t know the exact time but (especially in the winter because it’s dark at 4-4:30) past about 5-5:30pm I answer the phone as “good evening” instead of “good afternoon” instinctively, because it’s so dark. I’d never consider the pitch blackness of 6:30 in November to be the afternoon. I could understand if being confusing in the summer when day runs into evening, but it just smells fishy in this case.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 3m3 minutes ago
Pillay is finished. Ken Lockhart is now re-examining for the Crown. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 57s57 seconds ago
Lockhart is pointing to specific points in Hutcheon's notebooks about phone numbers. He asks were that info came from. "Mr. Dellen Millard," Hutcheon responds. He's now finished. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 1m1 minute ago
The next witness is another Toronto police officer: Tricia Johnston. Ken Lockhart is again asking her questions for the Crown. #Millard

 

[6degrees]

This part is what really stood out to me. Housekeeper comes twice a day - once around 9/10 am and then again around 5/6 pm. DM says when he arrived around 6/6:30 he "noticed" his dad still sleeping (on his way to his room, for a sweater, before fixing a snack). The only way he's noticing anything in his dad's room is if the door is open or he went in there. There's no way the door was open or the housekeeper would have discovered WM that very morning. I suppose much (if not all) of this will be cleared up when the housekeeper's statement is entered into evidence. As well as why she came back at 9:30. To do the dishes. Yeah, sure she did.

Additionally, does DM forget that he told LE or EMS at one point that he hadn't heard from or seen his father for a couple of days hence he went to Maple Gate to check in on him and yet as he spins his tale during the 50 minute interview, he completely leaves out any sense of concern or alarm he may have had for his father's well being not having seen him? He talks about casually getting a sweater from a closet (because it had been a cold day) and then was heading to make himself a snack when he just happened to notice his father.....wouldn't his intent have been to be locating his father in the home to satisfy that he was well and safe rather than stumbling upon him "sleeping late in the afternoon" as a happy accident? This again just speaks to DM's clumsiness....but then again we've since that over and over again since May 2013.

 

[Kamille]

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 7m7 minutes ago
She was part of the investigation on Nov. 29, but also later investigation into Dellen Millard in the spring and summer of 2013. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 6m6 minutes ago
She says she got a call about Millard's death on Nov. 29 -- at that time, it was categorized as a sudden death. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 4m4 minutes ago
Johnston says she attended the scene where Millard's body was found at Maple Gate Court. She got there at 8:55 p.m. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 2m2 minutes ago
Johnston
was the officer who Hutcheon (the last witness) was relieving that night. #Millard

Adam Carter‏Verified account @AdamCarterCBC 30s31 seconds ago
Johnston says she went into Millard's bedroom. She saw him lying on a bed, with his right hand under his head. "There's some blood on the pillow, and on his face." #Millard