Raymond Cormier appears in court, still without a lawyer

The man awaiting trial for second degree murder in the death of Tina Fontaine appeared in a Winnipeg court today to iron out who his lawyer will be.

Raymond Cormier is currently without legal representation after parting ways with three lawyers, only two of whom were officially attached to the case. Cormier hopes to hire a Brandon-based lawyer but his choice must be approved by Legal Aid.

Cormier was transported from Brandon Correctional Centre this morning to appear in a Winnipeg court before Provincial Court Judge Dale Harvey.

Cormier, 54, appeared sullen and frustrated, telling Harvey that Legal Aid would not let him hire the lawyer he wanted. At one point Harvey admonished Cormier for interrupting him.

Cormier named the Brandon-based lawyer he wanted to hire, then gestured to the Legal Aid representative and said "but they won't let me."

Cormier previously told CBC News he has already dismissed two lawyers assigned by Legal Aid. One, he said, because she wasn't doing enough on the case. The other, he said, because he felt the lawyerthought he was guilty.

He said he was in talks with another lawyer who had to decline because of a conflict of interest.

• Tina Fontaine's alleged killer says police fabricated evidence
• Ray Cormier was spotted burning trash outside apartment connected to Tina Fontaine's death

"In general, the courts don't like people to go unrepresented," said Legal Aid Manitoba executive director Gil Clifford in an interview CBC News.

"The courts are very anxious to make sure people are represented on a complex criminal matter because it makes for a long tedious process, and rife with appeal and everything else, if they don't have a lawyer," Clifford said.

While not commenting on the Cormier case specifically, he said, "Even if somebody keeps firing every lawyer that you give them, the courts will still almost insist on a lawyer representing someone in a complex case."

He said in rare cases in which someone fires several Legal Aid lawyers without good reason, the court can order the province to pay for a lawyer rather than having one provided through Legal Aid.

Clifford said the person assigned must have enough experience as a lawyer, and specifically with cases involving the most serious crimes, before they would be assigned to defend someone in a murder case.

In court today Judge Harvey instructed a Legal Aid representative to work towards appointing a new lawyer for Cormier and set the next court date as December 13.

A preliminary hearing for Cormier's murder charges is scheduled for next May in Winnipeg.

Fontaine is the 15-year-old whose body was pulled from the Red River in Winnipeg near the Alexander Docks on August 17, 2014. She was originally from Sagkeeng First Nation.

• Tina Fontaine, 15, found in bag in Red River

Fontaine had been in the care of Child and Family Services and had been reported missing.

Her death added momentum to calls for a national inquiry into murdered and missing indigenous women.

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