CAYUGA—The 14-person jury sitting in the trial of Randall McKenzie and Brandi Stewart-Sperry, charged with the first-degree murder of Haldimand OPP Constable Greg Pierzchala, are receiving additional security leaving the courtroom daily following a letter of concern submitted to Justice Andrew Goodman near the end of the day on Monday, March 31.
That note mentioned “four to six” people standing outside the courthouse during recesses and at the end of the day with jurors indicating their belief that those people were friends of Randall McKenzie and expressing concern for their safety.
Goodman instructed the jurors not to speculate on the connection between the two but confirmed that jurors would be escorted to their vehicles daily by an OPP officer for the remainder of the trial.
Witnesses over the week included Michael Ehl, who was travelling west on Indian Line Rd. on the day of the incident at the same time Constable Pierzchala was shot.
After the escaping Chevy Silverado sped past him towards Hagersville, Ehl exited his vehicle and went to Pierzchala’s side, noting he was still breathing at the time as he tried to administer first aid to the best of his ability.
Ehl recalled other vehicles trying to block the escaping Silverado.
A 2006 Ford F-250 driven by Paul Reichenbach was one of those vehicles. Reichenbach was the next witness to take the stand.
He recalled seeing some “excitement” down the road while filling up at the nearby Stop and Save Gas and Variety.
As he pulled up to the scene on his way back to Hagersville, he saw Pierzchala laying on the road. Fearing he would be run over, Reichenbach said he initially tried to stop traffic from passing through by blocking the lane with his truck.
He recalled seeing the two suspects enter the Silverado and spin the wheels “less than a foot from running the officer over.”
“They tried to do a little loop to turn towards Brantford,” said Reichenbach. “That’s when I backed my truck up the Springvale side of the road so he couldn’t go up towards Brantford.”
There, he recalled connecting with the escaping Silverado, recalling how they “pushed bumper to bumper a little bit,” and backing his truck up to try and ram the fleeing suspects, but the driver was able to break free and speed off east towards Hagersville.
Reichenbach gave chase while dialling 911 from behind the wheel, estimating their speeds as between 90 and 120km per hour. He recalled swerving around other vehicles, noting how at one point the Silverado drove into oncoming traffic forcing a grain truck off the road onto the shoulder.
Once they reached Hagersville and Reichenbach saw pedestrians on the street near the local Giant Tiger on King St. W, he gave up the pursuit.
OPP Detective Constable Paul Drake was the next witness to take the stand.
Drake was responsible for putting together a map of the route the Silverado took after fleeing the scene, using CCTV footage. Drake painstakingly reviewed still images of the passing Silverado from several camera screens along Indian Line Rd., through downtown Hagersville, and towards Mississauga Rd., some high-resolution, others not. He went through a list of details for each photo, identifying items that mark the truck, such as the tonneau cover pulled tightly shut, chrome trim, and bird droppings on the hood.
Hagersville resident Tiffany Cowie witnessed the Silverado speeding down Howard St., driving on a sidewalk at one point, where two pieces of the truck’s running board snapped off. She retrieved the pieces and returned them to the police, calling the experience “surreal.”
Pierzchala’s zone partner that day, Constable Ryan Faust, arrived at the scene minutes after the shooting, having sped there with his lights and sirens on after being notified by dispatch.
As he approached, Faust knew, “I could see that it was Greg on the roadway.”
Like Pierzchala, Faust’s bodycam was recording that day. In the footage, Faust exits his vehicle and runs towards Pierzchala, surrounded by a group of people by this point. Pierzchala lays on the ground, wrapped in a blanket with his eyes closed in the footage.
Planning to apply a tourniquet, Faust removed Pierzchala’s vest, observed the six gunshot wounds, and realized he would not be able to help.
The next witness, Sgt. Bennett Gutenberg, recalled seeing Pierzchala, lifeless, lying on his back, while Pierzchala’s training officer, Evan Nohara, now resigned from the OPP, said the murder “certainly had an effect” on his decision to do so.
Earlier in the day, Drake reviewed footage captured from a camera at the home on Mississauga Rd. where the Silverado came to stop. In it, Stewart-Sperry can be seen trying to cover the truck with tarps, while the suspect alleged to be McKenzie changes into a pair of blue shorts, and is perched near the back passenger tire, previously shown to have deflated during the escape.
The male suspect and Stewart-Sperry can be seen walking off towards a wooded area behind the address, where they would eventually surrender.
On Thursday and Friday, the trial turned to the hunt to track down and arrest both suspects. Jurors were shown a lengthy 70-plus minute video of that effort after police tracked the stolen Silverado to its final destination using GM OnStar.
A local emergency response team was headed by OPP Sgt. Kevin York, who testified that after police on scene reported hearing voices in a wooded area on the property, a drone was deployed, capturing two people through thermal imaging. In an OPP helicopter overhead, Constable Michael Walli operated an infrared camera, relaying information to officers on the ground as a tactics and rescue unit closed in on the two suspects.
After splitting up, Stewart-Sperry was the first arrested by Six Nations Police Service Sgt. Raymond Johnson, who testified that he encountered her at 6:20 p.m. while he and other members of the service surrounded the property.
Stewart-Sperry was carrying a backpack at the time, which she threw to Johnson. She was then searched, with Johnson finding a key fob belonging to the stolen truck, drug paraphernalia, and a flathead screwdriver.
At the same time, McKenzie was retreating deeper into the woods. Shortly thereafter, a gunshot, fired by McKenzie, is reported by police on the ground, while Walli reported seeing the firearm in his hand from the helicopter camera.
“He just threw it,” reported Walli in the video. Police would later recover the gun, along with a shell casing.
McKenzie surrendered to police at 6:43 p.m., where he is quickly surrounded by three officers, seen clearly in the helicopter video approaching him with a dog. McKenzie is read his rights while crying out that his back is in extreme pain. Shortly after, officers are heard shouting at McKenzie to stop kicking them as he is loaded into a police vehicle.
Stay tuned to The Press for continuing coverage of the trial, slated to take approximately six weeks.
