Court bench warrant issued for arrest of embattled former mayor of Woodstock
The 50-year-old Birtch was ordered to appear to set a new trial date for a sexual assault case after a mistrial was declared earlier. He was expected to appear with a new lawyer as well after his previous lawyer James Battin was disbarred.
After all of the cases in courtroom two at the London Courthouse were dealt with and Birtch was a no-show, Justice Craig Sigurdson issued the bench warrant for his arrest early in the afternoon.
Birtch's legal woes began in 2022, and he's already been convicted of sexual assault and assault involving a woman he was romantically involved with, as well as a conviction to impaired driving.
The case he was expected to appear for involves another woman he had a relationship with.
The charges and convictions date back to 2017 up to 2023.
When he held office, Birtch was a two-term mayor for the city of Woodstock from 2015 until 2022.
Hashtags
Try Our AI Features
Explore what Daily8 AI can do for you:
Comments
No comments yet...
Related Articles
CTV News
11 minutes ago
- CTV News
U.S. woman jailed for 30 years in U.K. for failed assassination plot
A view of the Royal Courts Of Justice, in London, Tuesday, Jan. 19, 2021. (AP Photo/Kirsty Wigglesworth) London, United Kingdom -- An English court on Thursday handed an American woman a 30-year jail sentence after she was convicted of trying to murder a British man caught up in a feud between families. After a years-long police hunt, would-be assassin Aimee Betro, 45, was extradited earlier this year from Armenia, where she had been living, to face trial in the central English city of Birmingham. Prosecutors told the court Betro had covered her face with a niqab before climbing out of a car in September 2019 and trying to shoot Sikander Ali at point-blank range in his own car. But the handgun jammed and Ali drove away at high-speed. Hours later Betro returned to the house, and fired three shots at his family home, the court heard. Sentencing Betro, Judge Simon Drew told her it was only a 'matter of chance' that Ali had not been killed. 'You were engaged in a complex, well-planned conspiracy to murder,' he added. 'You were prepared to pull the trigger and did so on two separate occasions.' Prosecutors said Betro was part of a plot with co-conspirators Mohammed Aslam, 56, and his 31-year-old son, Mohammed Nabil Nazir. Betro had met Nazir on an online dating site, and told the jury she was in love with him. Both men were jailed last year for their roles in the 'violent' feud which erupted after they were injured in a brawl at Ali's father's clothing store in July 2018. Graphic design graduate Betro did not know Ali and denied three charges including conspiracy to murder and possessing a self-loading pistol. She said she had no knowledge of the plot. Betro, who is originally from Wisconsin, told jurors it was 'just a terrible coincidence' that she had been close to the scene of the attack. She maintained the real shooter was 'another American woman' who sounded similar to her and had the same phone and brand of trainers. Police said they had seen no evidence that Betro was paid for her role in the attack. AFP
CTV News
22 minutes ago
- CTV News
Garden City family shocked by $21,000 City of Winnipeg water bill
A Winnipeg family is demanding answers after being billed over $21,000 by the city for water usage. CTV's Joseph Bernacki has their story.
National Post
2 hours ago
- National Post
Canadian father and son named as major 'copyright pirates' jailed 5 years unless they give up their secrets
Two Ontario men accused of being the scofflaw pirates behind years of large-scale digital streaming of copyrighted movies and TV have been sentenced to five years in prison — not for piracy, but for contempt of court — unless they reveal passwords and accounts. Article content Some of the biggest entertainment media companies on the continent — Bell, Rogers, Disney, Paramount Pictures, Universal, Columbia Pictures and Warner Bros. — spent years chasing the digital pirates behind a bootleg service known as Smoothstreams, which was available globally from five user-friendly online platforms offering a vast collection of movies, TV and live sports since at least 2018. Article content Article content Article content Lawyers, private investigators, and technology specialists for the corporate giants began their hunt seven years ago, launching what is described as a 'sophisticated, extensive, and resource and time-intensive investigation.' Article content Article content They traced internet streams and servers, websites, payment processors and corporate records which, in the summer of 2022, led them to the homes of a Canadian father and son. Article content Ever since, Antonio Macciacchera, 73, of Woodbridge, Ont., and his son, Marshall Macciacchera, of Barrie, Ont., have been in a legal grapple, defying the might of global media heavyweights. Article content The media companies estimated there were 2.5 million visits to Smoothstreams services in 2021 giving an estimated revenue of more than $1.5 million a year. Article content Article content By most accounts, Smoothstreams did an adept job at content distribution. Subscribers paid monthly for online access to all sorts of TV channels and streaming content — live sports events were particularly popular — with customer payments allegedly processed by two Hong Kong-based companies and another in Panama. Article content Prices were cheap since the content wasn't licensed or authorized. The service fed through various websites, including MyStreams, StarStreams and Live247, with its slogan: 'Where all your streams come true!' Article content Article content But after corporate officials, armed with court orders, arrived at the homes and a business of the Macciaccheras and unplugged at least 65 television receivers connected to 24 servers, viewers quickly complained of the abrupt end. Article content 'Saddest day 10 years of perfection gone — please come back soonest,' one customer posted to a Smoothstreams social media account. 'Damn the end of an era?' asked another.
