Chief's concern misplaced?

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ken gigliotti / winnipeg free press Derek Harvey-Zenk: can�t recall events

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An innocent woman had just died, and yet East St. Paul police chief Harry Bakema was allegedly more concerned about the fate of the off-duty Winnipeg officer responsible for her death.

Corrine Scott, a retired superintendent of the Winnipeg Police Service, told court Thursday about a puzzling call she received from Bakema immediately after the 2005 crash that killed Crystal Taman and left Derek Harvey-Zenk in custody.

"Harry was really focused on Derek Harvey-Zenk and not on the lady who lost her life. He was very concerned for Derek Harvey-Zenk's well-being," Scott told court. "I was honestly a bit disappointed in Harry."

Bakema, 60, is on trial for six criminal charges, including perjury, breach of trust and obstruction of justice related to the investigation. Taman, a married mother of three, was killed after her convertible was rear-ended by Harvey-Zenk while she waited at a red light near Lagimodiere Boulevard and the Perimeter Highway. Harvey-Zenk was on his way home from a night of drinking with fellow officers.

Bakema called Scott directly from the crash scene, less than an hour after the deadly incident, to warn her about Harvey-Zenk's involvement in the tragedy.

"Harry told me Derek had been drinking, he was at a party and smelled of liquor," said Scott. She began the process of notifying other senior members of Winnipeg police.

"I've never experienced an incident before where a member was impaired to the extent of causing this type of accident," she said.

Harvey-Zenk, 38, ultimately pleaded guilty to the reduced charge of dangerous driving causing death and was given a conditional sentence.

The failure of East. St. Paul police to properly document indications Harvey-Zenk was impaired is one of the reasons the case crumbled and alcohol-related charges were dropped by the Crown. That issue was the primary focus of a damning 2008 public inquiry, which ultimately led to Bakema's arrest. The inquiry concluded the crash investigation was "riddled with incompetence" and "conducted in bad faith."

Harvey-Zenk testified earlier Thursday and told court he has no memory of the events surrounding the deadly crash. He was asked numerous questions about the specific details of the case -- including socializing at a lounge with fellow off-duty officers, partying at one of their homes overnight and then driving his vehicle directly into Taman's. But he claimed to only recall vague flashbacks, such as an arm-wrestling contest at the house party and feeling the brunt of the impact. The rest is a foggy blur, he said.

As for his consumption of alcohol prior to the tragedy?

"I don't have any recollection of that," he said repeatedly. Harvey-Zenk said he also doesn't recall ever dealing with Bakema, either at the scene of the crash or at the East St. Paul police station.

"I don't really recall being at the police station," he said. "I don't recall ever seeing Harry Bakema at the station."

Harvey-Zenk admitted he previously worked with Bakema in the same Winnipeg police station before Bakema left to pursue the top job in East St. Paul. But he said there was never any personal friendship between them, although he did play in hockey games organized by Bakema.

Also Thursday, Winnipeg police patrol Sgt. Cecil Sveinson added to the growing amount of alcohol-related evidence when he repeated testimony he previously gave at the Taman inquiry -- that Bakema told him at the scene of the crash Harvey-Zenk was "pissed." Sveinson, who is a cousin of Taman's, went to the crash scene to perform a ceremonial smoke ceremony for the victim. He said Bakema added they had to get Harvey-Zenk "out of there right away."

Jason Woychuk, a former constable with the East. St. Paul service, told court Wednesday he was ordered by Bakema to exclude details of Harvey-Zenk's suspected impairment in his notes.

Woychuk said a paramedic at the scene indicated Harvey-Zenk may have been intoxicated at the time of the crash.

But Bakema ordered him to keep those details out of his report. He said Bakema, himself, indicated Harvey-Zenk was "impaired, or possibly impaired" as he brought the accused over to his cruiser car and placed him in the back seat.

www.mikeoncrime.com

Republished from the Winnipeg Free Press print edition May 11, 2012 A3