A jury trial is set later this year for a former B.C. Grand Chief and cabinet minister who’s pled not guilty to four sex charges.
The B.C. Prosecution Service confirms with PrinceGeorgeMatters that Edward John is scheduled to appear in the northern capital’s Supreme Court on Oct. 4, 2021.
The date was set this morning (March 29) and is anticipated to last five days.
The 71-year-old lawyer and hereditary chief of the Tl'azt'en Nation, located near Fort St. James, pleaded not guilty in July 2020 to the charges.
They’re related to allegations of having sexual intercourse with a female without her consent between Mar. 1 and Sept. 15, 1974.
John was appointed to B.C.'s cabinet as the NDP’s Minister of Children and Families in November 2000, serving until the change of government in June 2001.
He has also played key roles in the First Nations Summit and Assembly of First Nations.
- with a file from Jess Fedigan, PrinceGeorgeMatters, and The Canadian Press
