TORONTO - A lawyer for Rob Ramage is telling Ontario's top court that a police officer wilfully and deliberately violated the former NHL player's Charter rights.
Ramage was found guilty in 2007 on several charges including impaired driving causing death in a crash that killed his friend, fellow former NHLer Keith Magnuson.
Ramage's lawyer, Brian Greenspan, is arguing before the Court of Appeal for Ontario today that Ramage should get a new trial or have his four-year sentence reduced.
The former defenceman, who has been living in the U.S., surrendered into custody in Toronto last night for the appeal, but he was not in court.
Greenspan says a police officer who was at the hospital with Ramage following the 2003 crash showed a pattern of behaviour trampling on Ramage's rights.
The lawyer says the police officer seized a urine sample from Ramage without his informed consent.
"He could have done it the right way," Greenspan told the panel of three judges. "He chose to do it the wrong way."
The Crown was set to make arguments Monday afternoon after Greenspan completes his.
Suffering from a head injury and on morphine in the hospital after crashing a car, Ramage was not able to give informed consent when the officer requested a urine sample, Greenspan argued.
Ramage's Charter rights were violated after he urinated into two containers at the hospital following the crash and a police officer seized some, Greenspan said.
The officer didn't have a warrant, hadn't yet given Ramage a chance to speak with a lawyer, didn't advise him he didn't have to comply and didn't determine if Ramage was capable of giving informed consent, Greenspan said.
A court document the Crown has filed indicates it will be strongly arguing against the conviction and sentence appeals.
"Mr. Ramage's position at trial was highly speculative, and if true, amounted to a consecutive series of unfortunate events amounting to an unbelievable case of extreme 'bad luck,"' Crown attorney Philip Perlmutter writes.
Ramage was convicted in 2007 of impaired driving causing death, impaired driving causing bodily harm, dangerous driving causing death and dangerous driving causing bodily harm.
He was sentenced to four years imprisonment and was banned from driving for five years. Ramage has been out on bail since then, living in St. Louis.
Magnuson, 56, was killed when a rental car driven by Ramage slammed head-on into another vehicle just north of Toronto in December 2003. Ramage and Magnuson had just left a funeral reception for another former NHL player, Keith McCreary.
Ramage won Stanley Cup rings with the Calgary Flames and Montreal Canadiens. He also played for the Colorado Rockies, St. Louis Blues, Toronto Maple Leafs, Minnesota North Stars, Tampa Bay Lightning and Philadelphia Flyers. Ramage retired after the 1993-94 season.
Magnuson was a rugged defenceman who played his entire 11-season NHL career with the Blackhawks, retiring after the 1979-80 campaign. He also coached the team for a season and a half.
