Accused murderer remains jailed

PICTOU - A Pictou man accused of first-degree murder will stay behind bars - for now.
Bernard Frederick Hartling, 35, is accused in the shooting death of 30-year-old Kenneth McNamara, who was found dead outside his home on the Glen Road East in Central Caribou on Nov. 14, shortly after 10 a.m.
Hartling has been in custody since he was arraigned a few days later.
Crown attorneys Herman Felderhoff and Jody McNeill, who were both in attendance at a show cause hearing on Thursday, opposed Hartling's release.
Three people gave testimony in the hearing, which lasted four hours on Thursday. No details on the evidence given or the names of the three witnesses can be reported on due to a publication ban made by Justice Douglas MacLellan.
The grounds on which the Crown is objecting to his release also cannot be reported on.
The courtroom in Pictou Supreme Court was filled with family members of both the victim and the accused throughout the day Thursday. At times, members of the Hartling family gripped hands during the testimony.
In a show cause hearing, the onus is on the defence to show why the accused should be released into the community. Typically, a release includes strict conditions the accused must follow.
No decision has been made yet on whether Hartling will be released. MacLellan announced that he was reserving his decision until next Thursday, Jan. 14, in order to review case law.
In the meantime, Hartling will remain in custody and a no-contact order issued in late November, which forbids him from contacting a long list of potential witnesses, including members of McNamara's family and his pregnant girlfriend. Exceptions on the list included members of Hartling's own family.
MacLellan did question the Crown on the length of time they anticipated it would be before the case could potentially go to trial.
McNeill said that a jury term was available from Oct. 25 until Nov. 5 and no other trials were booked during that period. He indicated that he believed the case could go to trial then.
Defence lawyer Hector MacIsaac, who is representing Hartling, disagreed with that assessment, stating that it was more realistic to assume that the case would not go to trial until the spring of 2011.

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