a Mulhall said last week.

uned clothes tell

Wednesday, June 23, 1993 ~ North Shore News - 3

ur

er tale

Forensic specialist links stains with injuries of victim at W. Van trial

GERALD O'GRADY finally broke down into tears near
ne end of an hour-long phone call to the West Vancouver
olice four days after his wife was killed in their Park

royal Towers apartment.

A B.C. Supreme Court jury
,easd as O'Grady sobbed in a
raped call played in court Mon-
day:

O'Grady, 69, is on trial for
econd-degrce murder after his
ifé> Beverley, 64, was killed in
peif apartment on May 18, 1992,

petective Frank Beatty asked
the hard questions the day after

‘Gtady claimed a disgruntled
axtenant was a likely suspect in
the homicide.

“She's not a violent or physical
1ed¥"" the jury heard O'Grady tell

tty in the taped call.
il

By Brent Mudry

Contributing Writer

“Why would she fight off an
extended attack in the kitchen,
and not move to the next room
for her husband’s protection?”
the officer asked,

O'Grady had little explanation.

O'Grady claimed he was ghicd
to the television in the den and
couldn't hear any struggle in the
next room.

Beverley O'Grady sustained 20
to 25 blows to her head.

dispute

up; strike

No new talks scheduled as
union escalates job action

JHE COUNCIL of Trade Unions (CTU) began a 12-hour
strike this morning against all BC Rail operations in North
vancouver as part of escalating job action to back contract

demands.

The strike at the North Van-
ouver-based railway was sched-
yled_to start at 6 a.m., according
to CTU chairman Ray Callard.
‘fhe CTU represents seven
jons and approximately 1,600
workers at BC Rail.

qhe railway unions have been
without a contract since Dec. 31,

j Job action so far includes a ban
Overtime that started on Mon-
day? June 21. .
fhe CTU was in a legal strike
osition against BC Rail on
givtday, June 19, after serving
qg-four strike notice.
ghe strike notice was issued
er the unions’ membership
yotd 77% in favor of strike ac-
tion Na Mail-in vote,
“All options are open to us
ow?’ CTU vice-chairman Clyde

aft

fhe Crown-owned railway

-‘gmploys approximately 2,300

ior kers. .
BC Rail and the CTU have been

a parsaining approximately 35 days

1

this. year, according to BC Rail
spokesman Barrie Wall.

Wall said the overtime ban had
‘ot had a major impact on the
railWay’s Operations thus far.
“Our traffic has declined. As

DOUG. COLLINS is on the
Move. °

Starting in today’s Wednes-
day edition of the North Shore
News,. the controversial edito-
sia) columnist will move from
page 9 to page 7.

The move is part of an
ongoing reorganization of the
News to improve the newspa-
per’s coverage of community
news and consolidate its edito-
rial opinion pages.

By Anna Marie D’Angelo
News Reporter

soon as there is a strike notice,
our freight customers start making
alternative arrangements,’’ said
Wall.

He said freight customers often
choose to truck their goods during
a rail dispute.

To press time Tuesday, no new
talks in the dispute had been
scheduled,

Labour Relations Board media-
tor Jim Breckenridge has been in-
volved with contract talks.

Callard said the CTU has pared
down its demands from 168 to 39.

But he said the company is
seeking concessions in seniority
rights and wants to change clauses
dealing with the company’s rights
to cantract work out.

Callard also said the company
wants to set up two classes of
workers, with one at a lower wage
rate than the other,

The current wage rate for
unionized BC Rail workers ranges
from $14.60 per hour up to $27.55
per hour. ,

BC Rail spokesman Barrie Wall
said the company had not asked

See Cargo page 3

OEE

ao

eta

moving |

Her husband claimed she was
unconscious, bleeding Heavily, and
had no pulse when he found her.

The paper bags in her throat
and over her head must have
silenced any of her sereams,
O'Grady suggested.

Defenee tawyer Deirdre
Pothecary flourished an April 30
copy of the News to challenge the
police search for suspects.

Beatty was asked to read out
loud an article on the Crimestop-
pers re-enactment of a brutal
woodwork shop attack on Emil
Kassai on June 11, 1992, four
weeks after the O'Grady murder,

But Beatty told the jury that
there was lithe to dink the two
crimes.

O'Grady betrayed little emotion
as blown-up photographs of his

blood-stained clothes were posted
inthe Vancouver courtroom,

Crown prosecutor Hank Reiner
called forensic pathologist Dr.
James Alexander Ferris to match
Beverley O'Grady's injuries with
the blood-stain pattern analysis
on the clothing.

The final Crown witness has a
career record of 7,000 medical-
legal autopsies, including more
than 700 homicide cases.

Ferris’ injury-pattern analysis
expertise has been sought in such
disasters as the Arrow Air crash,
which killed 256 American ser-
vicemen in Gander, New-
foundland, in 1985 and the USS
lowa gun Curret explosion, which
took 47 lives in Puerto Rico in
1989,

In the dingo-baby case, which

inspired a full-length movie, Fer-
ris was called before an Australian
royal commission to review evi-
dence that convicted two parents
of killing their missing baby. The
couple was cleased of the death.

Ferris suggested that a pattern
of similar-sized blood droplets on
O'Grady’s sport shirt, pants and
tennis shoes indicated that
Beverley O'’Grady's blood sprayed
12 to 18 inches (30 to 46 em) in an
are as O'Grady crouched over his
wife and repeatedly stabbed her in
the head.

Reiner concluded the Crown's
case Monday, and Pothecary
opened evidence for the defence
on Tuesday.

Closing arguments in the trial
are expected Friday or carly next
week,

NEWS photo Mike Wakefleld

A FIRE drill was staged last week at the Kiwanis Lodge in West Vancouver. A West Vancouver
Fire Department (WVFD) firefighter is shown carrying a victim out of the smoker's lounge on
the second fleor of a Icdge wing. WVFD Capt. Joe Haggerty acted as the victim. The smoke
was created by a smoke machine.

More hikers rescued on Grouse

FIVE YOUTHS were rescued from a trail under Grouse of Goat Mountain (he had been
Mountain’s Skyride on Saturday night after the group at-
tempted to hike up the mountain shortly before dark at

8:30 p.m.

The incident marked the fourth
time the North Shore Search and
Rescue Team (NSSRT) has con-
ducted rescues in the Grouse
Mountain area since May 30.

North Shore Emergency Pro-
gram coordinator Ross Peterson
said the hikers in Saturday’s
episode were found stranded near
a steep rock bluff three-quarters
of the way up the mountain.

“They started hiking far too
late in the evening,’’ said Peter-
son.

No one was reported injured in
the incident.

Peterson said a Skyride tram
operator heard the hikers shouting
for help and called the police.

NSSRT search parties hiked
from the top and the bottom of
the mountain fo the stranded
hikers,

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&8 Classified Ads..........44
Hi Comics ........ ...38
Bi Crossword.............48
Bi Cuisine Scene..........39

By Anna Marie D’Angelo
News Reporter

The hikers were then escorted to
the Skyride station at the top of
the mountain.

Recent NSSRT rescue opera-
tions in the the Grouse Mountain
area:

@on May 30, a man suffering
from hypothermia was rescued
near Hanes Creek after members
of his hiking group managed to
hike out for help;

@ on June 12, a female suffered a
head injury after she fell during a
hike on the trail under Grouse
Mountain’s skyride (she had been
hiking with another person);

@® on June 13, a male suffering
from hypothermia was rescued
from a cliff face on the north side

index
FA Lifestyles........
A North Shore Now ..
BG Sports ............
TY Listings
What's Going On .

....49
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vee A

hiking with a friend).

“They all suffer from the same
thing,’’ Peterson said. ‘‘That is,
people going out poorly equipped
and with practically no sense of
planning for their trip.’’

Peterson said it was not un-
common for rescues to be
clustered in one area of the North
Shore.

He added that the number of
rescues conducted so far this year
was not unusual.

Said Peterson, ‘‘We suggest to
certainly take advantage of the
beautiful mountain terrain we
have close to us, but learn some-
thing about the hazards and trail
systems.”

He said hikers should plan day
trips so that they can return to
their cars before darkness. He said
hikers should bring the proper
equipment. :

“The hikers we've rescued are
not all novices, but they have
shown poor judgment,’’ said
Peterson.

Weather

Thursday, sunny with cloudy
periods. Highs 21°C.

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