CHARLOTTETOWN, P.E.I. — A P.E.I. man who was charged with obstruction of justice after he asked a witness in a case if they talked to the police was found not guilty recently.
Donald Christopher Higgins appeared before Judge John Douglas in provincial court in Charlottetown for a decision after pleading not guilty and taking the matter to trial.
The charge stemmed from an incident during which Higgins asked a teenage boy to tie a birthday balloon to a woman’s house.
At the time, Higgins was banned from having any contact with the woman.
In October 2018, Chief Judge Nancy Orr sentenced Higgins to six months in jail for criminal harassment and breaching his probation.
That conviction was the third for Higgins involving the same victim.
During the trial, the court heard Higgins contacted the boy and asked if he had talked to the police, to which the teen responded that he hadn’t yet.
The court heard Higgins told him not to.
Higgins testified he wasn’t trying to obstruct justice.
In giving his decision, Douglas said the Crown hadn’t satisfied beyond a reasonable doubt what Higgins’ intent was in making the comment.
