Murrin
revives lawsuit over 1995 beating
By DORIS
FURLOT The
Daily Courier
The man acquitted in Mindy Tran's murder is pursuing a civil lawsuit first filed
in 1997 against the group of people he claims were involved in attempting to
beat a confession from him
Shannon Murrin's claim for damages from the 1995 beating are aimed against the
main police investigator, Gary Tidsbury, for allegedly ordering the attack, the
federal Attorney General's office which is responsible for the RCMP, and the
three men originally charged with the beating: Patrick Alan Dunn, Robert Patrick
Holmes and Kenneth Lawrence MacDonald
The civil suit was originally filed in B.C. Supreme Court in New Westminster in
1997, only days before Murrin was charged with Mindy's murder. The case was
recently revived by Murrin's Vancouverbased lawyer, Andrew Nathanson, who filed
an intention to proceed on April 29
The Crown alleged that on Jan. 5, 1995, Dunn, Holmes, and MacDonald took Murrin
to the spot in Mission Creek Regional Park where Mindy's body was found and
attempted to beat a confession from him. While Dunn was sentenced to six months
in jail after pleading guilty to assaulting Murrin, charges against Holmes and
MacDonald were eventually dropped after their lawyers argued they were not tried
in a timely fashion
Lawyer Michael Kennedy, who represented Murrin on weapons charges, said his
client received a broken nose, 14 stitches to his head, numerous bruises to his
legs and an ankle injury
Murrin spent more than 10 days in hospital recovering before he was arrested by
police for pulling a handgun on Dunn earlier in the evening of the beating
Murrin pleaded guilty to two weapons offences, but told the court during his
sentencing that his memory of the evening's events was a blur
"I tell you the truth, I can't remember what happened that night. We were
all drinkin' that night," Murrin told the Kelowna judge, before being
sentenced to two years in prison for the weapons offences
Tidsbury, retired from the RCMP since 1999, would not return phone calls from The
Daily Courier
regarding the pending lawsuit
Back in 1995, in an interview with The Daily Courier
, Murrin alleged Tidsbury paid the three men to beat a confession out of him
At the time, Tidsbury was told by his superiors not to comment on the
allegations
Murrin's allegations against Tidsbury, along with his experience being
investigated and tried for Mindy's murder, will comprise half his autobiography,
according to Newfoundland book publisher Winston Ruby
Ruby told The Daily Courier
that Murrin's lawyers wanted to see a copy of the upcoming book before it was
published, especially with the lawsuit pending
"Shannon's story shows a consistency in character. It was never meant to be
impartial," said Ruby
"Shannon's (now) living on a sort of road where people are walking and
jogging with children. He would be run out of town if parents would think he
would hurt their children," he said
Murrin's book is expected to be out in the fall. Ruby said Murrin and his
girlfriend, former juror Kathy MacDonald, have been living on social assistance
and writing since returning to the East Coast after Murrin was acquitted of
Mindy's murder in 2000. MacDonald said she doesn't understand all the attention
given to her relationship with Murrin
"It was something that progressed naturally after he started to come and
see me in Vancouver to work on his book," said MacDonald
Believing Murrin is innocent, MacDonald is writing her own book about Mindy's
murder investigation. She hopes to convince others that Mindy's death is still
unsolved. "I'm just trying to get the story out," MacDonald said.
Following six months as a juror on the high profile murder trial that saw Murrin
acquitted of Mindy's murder, MacDonald said the evidence makes her believe the
police investigation failed everyone involved
"It's a double tragedy, both Mindy's murder and Shannon being a
victim," said MacDonald
Murrin's claims and allegations made in the pending civil suit have yet to be
proven in court.