Tuesday April 9, 2013 (Vol. 38 No. 29)
V O I C E
O F
W H I T E
R O C K
A N D
S O U T H
S U R R E Y
w w w. p e a c e a r c h n e w s . c o m
Road warrior: Afghanistan veteran John Lowe is embarking on a bike trip through Western Europe to raise awareness about posttraumatic stress disorder. › see page 11
‘Blessing in disguise’ for man who held up corner store
Arrest reveals childhood head injury Tracy Holmes Staff Reporter
When Courtland Moffett was eight years old, the vehicle he and his father were in was hit by a truck. His father’s injuries were obvious and significant, and ended John Moffett’s career as an air-traffic controller. The younger Moffett, by comparison, came away relatively unscathed – or so everyone thought.
In the years that followed, his parents struggled to understand changes they saw in their son’s behaviour; among other things, he exhibited anxiety and became impulsive. But it wasn’t until more than a decade after the crash, and after the then-21-year-old Peninsula man robbed a White Rock corner store – threatening to kill the clerks with a gun he never produced – that they learned just how serious his childhood injuries had been.
An MRI requested by Surrey Provincial Court officials last year, as his case progressed through the system, showed he had frontal and temporal lobe brain damage, the court heard last week. Those injuries were likely compounded by a 2009 motorcycle accident, the court heard. Those injuries explained everything. Wednesday, during a sentencing hearing for the May 2012 robbery, prosecutor Paul
Barclay and defence counsel Gordon Bowen agreed with Judge Ellen Gordon’s description of Moffett’s arrest that day as “a blessing in disguise, in its own perverse way.” It led to discovery of the damage, and, perhaps more importantly, to the family finally understanding what was happening, why it was happening and what they and Moffett could do to mitigate and control the effects. › see page 2
‘Protector’ gunned down
Hollywood nomination
Young actor gets attention
Murder charge Sheila Reynolds Black Press
Bradley McPherson was a protector, someone who always stood up for others, according to his family. So when he was at a Christmas Eve party in 2011 and witnessed someone being disrespectful, he stepped in. “And for that his life was taken,” his tearful mother, Susan Simning, said at a news conference Monday announcing the name of a man arrested in her son’s death. Russell Bidesi, of Surrey, was charged Saturday with second-degree murder in connection with McPherson’s shooting at a house party near 131 Street and 67A Avenue 16 months ago. Police say McPherson was an innocent victim in the wrong place at the wrong time, and they don’t believe McPherson, 28, and Bidesi, 22, knew each other. “He was my protector,” said McPherson’s sister Mariah, wiping away tears. “He was always there for me when I needed someone else to run to.” Older sister Jennie said Bradley was her best friend and the perfect uncle to her children. Bidesi is already in custody, having been charged in February 2012 for a separate Surrey killing. Bidesi is among three men charged with second-degree murder in the Feb. 26, 2012 shooting of 31-year-old Kacey Rogers. Rogers was attacked in his home in the 14000-block of Grosvenor Road in what police called “a planned home invasion turned deadly.” Police say the two murders are unrelated.
Boaz Joseph photo
Victim Bradley McPherson’s mother, Susan Simning, speaks at a news conference Monday morning.
Celebrating Special Supplement publishing April 25, 2013 YEARS OF ROTARY IN BC
Call today to reserve your spot
604.531.1711
A busy young local actor is up for a prestigious Hollywood award. Seth Isaac Johnson, 12, is one of the nominees for the 34th annual Young Artists Awards, which will be held May 5 at Studio City. Johnson is nominated for best performance in a supporting role in a TV series, recognizing his work as a regular in the award-winning, Vancouver-shot AMC crime drama, The Killing. He is Seth Isaac competing for Johnson the award with Isaac Wright (Game of Thrones), Ian Patrick and Max Charles (The Neighbours), Justin MacDonald (Debra), Tyree Brown (Parenthood) and Maxim Knight (Falling Skies). The Crescent Park Elementary student has won acclaim for emotional and dramatic performances on-screen, and is also a voice actor, with a lead in the upcoming PBS cartoon series, Jet Propulsion. On the big screen, he will be seen this summer in the feature film, Red Machine, starring James Marsden and Billy Bob Thornton.
What’s your New Year’s resolution? How about eating more fruits and veggies?
See page 4 For more information, please visit www.kinsfarmmarket.com/greenfighters