By Anna Marie D'Angelo
May 27, 1996
A North Vancouver woman who sat as a juror in the Dosanjh murder trial was charged on Monday with obstructing justice.
Police allege that Gillian Guess was both juror and intimate friend of an accused killer of the Dosanjh brothers.
Guess, 41, of North Vancouver, was arrested on Monday. She was escorted out of the North Vancouver RCMP detachment and taken to Vancouver provincial court where she was charged. She was released from custody.
The obstruction charge alleging a "personal relationship" between a juror and an accused is the first ever to be laid in Canada.
Charges of obstructing justice are usually laid in connection with bribes or threats.
Guess was a juror in the high-profile Dosanjh brothers murder trial. The brothers and innocent bystander Glen Olsen were gunned down in three separate gang-style slayings in 1994. Police say the planned murders were the result of an ongoing feud between two rival groups of drug dealers.
Guess is accused of having an intimate relationship with Preet (Peter) Sarbjit Gill, one of six accused killers who faced first-degree murder charges.
The trial resulted in the acquittals last October of Gill, Bhupinder Johal, Rajinder Kumar Benji, Michael Kent Budai, Ho Sik (Phil) Kim and Sun News Lal.
Acquittals in the trial are being appealed by the Crown. Vancouver RCMP Sgt. Peter Montague said the obstruction charge may be used to support an appeal of the verdicts.
Ironically, Guess worked as a part-time victim assistance counsellor at the North Vancouver RCMP detachment at the time she was a juror. She worked as a victim counsellor while she allegedly had an affair with an accused killer.
In earlier News interviews, Guess said she went out with Gill after the trial was completed. The two met at a nightclub and dated, said Guess.
"He was in my life for a couple of months," said Guess.
Guess was unavailable for comment to press time Tuesday.
In a recent News interview, Guess defended the not-guilty verdict.
Said Guess, "I truly believe that those guys were totally, excuse my language, f....d over."
She said the police had put her in danger by opening her up to possible retribution by the Dosanjh family.
"When you published my name, I thought I was going to be killed ... But what really surprised me is the amount of community support I received as a result of my name being published in the North Shore News," said Guess.
Montague said the charge and Guess' public statements speak for themselves.
"I'm not sure that it's a fair or an accurate statement that the police put this person in danger," said Montague.
Guess is single and has two children.
The eight-month Dosanjh jury trial was the longest in B.C. history. At an estimated cost of $1.9 million, it was also the most expensive.
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