KENTVILLE — It was a chaotic morning at court on Tuesday as a North Kentville man on trial for alleged sex crimes against a young girl was pepper-sprayed after squaring off against deputy sheriffs following an apparent threat.
Darrin Phillip Rouse yelled out and groaned in discomfort after being sprayed in the hallway of the courthouse. The deputies, one of whose eyes were watering, guided a handcuffed Rouse to a drinking fountain so he could flush out his eyes, his discomfort apparent.
He was later taken down to the holding cells and the Nova Scotia Supreme Court trial was adjourned until the afternoon.
The incident started a few minutes after Rouse was removed from court after a verbal altercation with the prosecutor and judge.
He was talking to his surety in a discussion that rapidly got heated and told her to “shut up” and go home before uttering what appeared to be a threat to her.
A deputy sheriff told Rouse to be quiet.
“I won’t be,” he retorted, and the sheriff told him he was under arrest and asked him to turn around.
Rouse asked for what, said he didn’t threaten anyone, and started walking away as a second deputy arrived. He didn’t stop for them, and after they went around a corner Rouse was heard to say something akin to he would “take them both on.”
One person in the hallway said Rouse put his hands in front of him and squared off against the deputies.
That’s when the spray was used and the yelling started.
Rouse, who got into two verbal altercations with the Crown attorney Monday, had been testifying in his own defence Tuesday morning on two charges of sexual interference with a young person while in a position of trust, and one each of sexual touching and invitation to sexual touching.
Things went poorly during his testimony.
When Crown attorney Mike MacKenzie objected to a response from Rouse to defence lawyer Robert Stewart, calling it hearsay evidence, the morning started to take a turn. Justice Mona Lynch agreed with MacKenzie and Rouse became frustrated.
When Lynch asked if Rouse wanted to take a break, he said “Do I get to speak? . . . You’re trying to shut me down. You asked me to tell my story and nowyou won’t let me.”
The judge then told Rouse to take a break and adjourned court while telling Stewart to speak to his client.
On the way out of the courtroom, Rouse called it a “kangaroo court.”
He eventually came back in and continued to testify, but when it was time for MacKenzie’s crossexamination, things became heated again.
When Rouse tried to talk over MacKenzie about something he hadn’t been asked, Lynch broke in again, saying his name four times.
“Mr. Rouse, are you hearing me speak? He didn’t ask you about that. Answer the questions he asks, OK? Do you understand?”
“So I’m not allowed to elaborate?” Rouse replied.
The judge told him he could only elaborate on the question that was asked, and she said what he was trying to talk about has not been asked.
The testimony went on for another three minutes, with Rouse remaining composed. But then he answered a question with a comment that wasn’t related.
“That’s not what I asked you,” MacKenzie said.
“Why won’t you allow me to speak? Why won’t you allow me to finish and speak to the question?” Rouse said, becoming agitated. “Is this a kangaroo court or what?”
“Mr. Rouse,” the judge said, trying to break in.
“Come on, people. I’m trying to give my evidence here, and I’m getting cut off every time I go to say something. So this is a kangaroo court as far as I’m concerned,” Rouse said, before addressing the judge with “and you’re allowing him to do it.”
MacKenzie tried to ask his question again but Rouse said, “I’m done talking to you. I’m out. I want a break . . . we’re going to get some ground rules here and I’m not going to listen to him basically try to manipulate what I said.”
At that point Lynch interrupted.
“Let’s just be clear, Mr. Rouse, who makes the rules here. I do.”
“You can make the rules all you want. You want to put me downstairs (in cells)? Because that’s not going to change anything,” he responded.
She said his name one more time and he interrupted her again, at which point she said it loudly one last time and told a deputy to remove Rouse from the courtroom.
As Rouse was leaving Lynch reminded him that he was in the middle of giving evidence and couldn’t talk to anybody about it.
“Yeah, well I’m gonna talk to everybody. You’re a half-assed judge,” he replied.
The complainant, now in her mid-20s, testified Monday she had a two-year sexual relationship with Rouse that started when she was 13.
Rouse had testified in his direct evidence Tuesday morning that he was in jail for sexual assault in the year the complainant and her mother said they first met him, but that after they did meet he told the mother about his conviction and the terms of his parole, which included having no one-onone contact with females under the age of 16.
He denied ever having sex with the complainant.
The complainant’s mother testified she had a short fling with Rouse after they first met in a bar, and they later became friends.
The daughter alleged her relationship started later, court heard. Rouse said he did meet the mother in a bar, but there was no fling or sexual relationship.
“I took notice of her because because a man touched her ass, and she turned around and punched him in the face,” he testified. “I took an interest in her and started up a conversation.”
He also denied the complainant’s allegations that he had attended her birthday parties, and said he was never alone with her at his home.
A contrite Rouse returned to court at 2 p.m. and apologized for his behaviour in the morning. There were two extra deputy sheriffs in the courtroom, and Rouse was flanked by a Kentville police officer and a jailer from the holding cells.
“I apologize. This is your court. I disrespected it,” Rouse told Lynch, adding that he had some issues and doesn’t fully understand the court process.
“I certainly apologize. I did not mean to disrespect you or the Crown.”
Lynch said she accepted his apology, and reminded him when he took the stand that he was to answer only the questions asked, and not ask questions himself.
But it wasn't long before Rouse became agitated again. MacKenzie was asking him about his use of illegal drugs while under release conditions and his testimony at a bail review hearing.
“What does that have to do with this?” Rouse asked after answering the question.
“Mr. Rouse, you’re not going to ask questions. We’ve been through that,” the judge said.
MacKenzie later played part of the audio recording of Rouse’s bail review hearing, and things became heated again.
MacKenzie tried to ask a question four times while Rouse talked over him, and when MacKenzie said to look at him, Rouse replied, “I don’t want to look at you. You’re the last person I want to look at.”
Rouse was told several times to answer the questions, and at one point responded loudly to MacKenzie, “none of your damn business' when he asked what he was doing in Mahone Bay last weekend.
After a few more admonishments from the judge to stop interrupting, the cross-examination concluded.
Rouse left court with the police officer to be interviewed about the incident from the morning. He was being held in custody overnight until an appearance in Kentville provincial court Wednesday on charges of causing a disturbance, uttering threats, assaulting a deputy sheriff, resisting arrest and breach of a court recognizance.
Lawyers will make closing arguments Wednesday morning.