Andy Ivens
The Province
Anyone sitting in on a trial of six accused killers in 1995 could see Gillian Guess and one of the accused flirting, witnesses told her obstruction-of-justice trial yesterday.
They told a B.C. Supreme Court jury in Vancouver she was "dramatic," "flirtatious" and "almost seductive."
Guess, of North Vancouver, has pleaded not guilty to obstructing justice by "having a personal relationship" with Peter Gill, one of the six accused of the murders of drug lords Jim and Ron Dosanjh.
All six were found not guilty after a seven-month trial in 1995.
Emma Hyde, the court clerk at the trial, described the eye contact between Guess, now 42, and Gill, 30, as "prolonged, more captivating" than a normal look.
Hyde described Guess's body language, as she sat in the front row of the jurors' box, as "almost seductive."
"She'd smile almost coyly," said Hyde, now a Vancouver police officer. "She would flip her hair and look seductive is the best way to put it."
Hyde said the looks were a topic of conversation among court staff.
"There were a number of people who spoke to me about it," said Hyde.
Asked defence counsel Peter Ritchie: "I take it the daily flirtations didn't sit well with you?"
Hyde, whose duties included maintaining decorum, replied: "I had concerns about how it looked to people coming into the courtroom."
Hyde said she and deputy sheriff Gene Walsh twice approached Justice Tom Braidwood in his office with their concerns.
With the jury outside the courtroom, Braidwood warned the accused about making contact with the jurors.
Hyde said that seemed to stop the flirting for a couple of weeks.
She didn't go back to the judge to report the renewed flirting.
"The issue was never raised in court again?" asked Ritchie.
"No," she replied.
Court reporter Spencer Charest said he caught Gill and Guess smiling at each other "a few times."
Ritchie challenged Charest to explain his statement at the preliminary hearing that Guess appeared "dramatic."
"She wore brilliant, dramatic colors, tight-fitting miniskirts and high heels," said Charest.
"She was dramatic."
When Ritchie suggested Guess's dress was typical summer attire, Charest responded: "She was consistently dramatic, no matter what the weather was."
Of the flirting, Charest said: "I've worked in many, many, many, many jury trials and I hadn't seen that before."
Deputy sheriff Sunny Punn also testified he had never seen flirting like that between Gill and Guess at a trial before.
- Guess has set up a Web page to put her own spin on her story -- www3.bc.sympatico.ca/GGUESS/
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