Teen to stand trial for arson

Photo: Ragnar Haagen - Kelowna

Brandon Seberras-Pick walks towards the Kelowna Courthouse in this Castanet file photo.

A young man accused of arson, mischief and break and enter will be taking his case to trial.

Brandon Seberras-Pick was 18-years-old when it's alleged that he set a house on fire, then broke into another home to steal food, while drunk and high on magic mushrooms.

The incident took place the night of Feb. 16, 2012. A police dog tracked him to another house, where Seberras-Pick was found hiding in the basement, not wearing any pants.

Wednesday’s court appearance dealt with whether Seberras-Pick’s rights were violated by police when he was arrested and if he volunteered a statement on his own free will.

When speaking to police the following morning after his arrest, he admitted to an officer that he had started the fire on Large Avenue by holding a lighter against the wooden deck and then simply walking away once there was a steady flame.

In her decision, Justice Jane Cartwright found the officer did not do anything unjust when he induced a statement from Seberras-Pick saying, “the statement was voluntary” and he “blurted out these things” to the officer conducting the interview.

The other issue was his right to counsel without delay. Justice Cartwright found there was “a real delay”, and his rights were violated when Seberras-Pick was finally allowed to speak with his parents about getting a lawyer, over an hour after he first asked officers. However there was no evidence that the officer intentionally delayed the request.

A trial date is expected to be set later this week.

Both counsels believe the trial could take up to two days.