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	City Lawyer Decides Not to Return to Inquiry By Trevor Pritchard Standard Freeholder February 27, 2008 http://www.standard-freeholder.com/ArticleDisplay.aspx?e=921013 A city lawyer who felt he was treated unfairly at the Cornwall Public Inquiry last November has turned down an opportunity to return to the stand. Sean Adams had been seeking another chance to answer questions about his involvement in a $32,000 settlement between an alleged sexual abuse victim and the Alexandria-Cornwall Roman Catholic Diocese. In December, Gordon Cameron, one of Adams' attorneys, filed a motion with the commission that stated questions posed by lead counsel Peter Engelmann had done "irreparable harm" to his client's reputation. In response, the inquiry gave Adams, also a well-known local philanthropist, another chance to testify this month. Adams had originally been scheduled to return on Feb. 14. When that didn't work out, Adams' appearance was rescheduled for either Monday or Tuesday. On Monday, commission staff received word that Adams had changed his mind about testifying. "We were somewhat surprised that he didn't follow through," Engelmann said yesterday. "But it's his decision." Adams' lawyers gave no reason for their client's about-face, Engelmann added. One of those lawyers, Ronald McClelland, said he couldn't discuss the matter without his Adams' permission. Neither Adams nor Cameron returned phone calls Wednesday. Adams acted briefly for David Silmser - the man who received the $32,000 payout in 1993 - and provided him with independent legal advice. In December, he was granted limited standing at the inquiry so his lawyers could question or cross-examine any witness who gave evidence against him. Session cancelled Cornwall (Staff) Hearings at the Cornwall Public Inquiry were cancelled Wednesday to give Comm. Normand Glaude more time to rule on a legal challenge that could see parts of nearly 20 witnesses' testimony tossed out. "It's a very important decision," said lead commission counsel Peter Engelmann. "There's at least a distinct possibility that one of the parties objecting to some of the evidence might be taking this matter to the divisional court." In January, the Ontario Court of Appeal ruled that Glaude overstepped the inquiry's mandate by trying to hear the testimony of a 16-year-old girl who was allegedly raped by two teens in 1993. The court's decision overturned a September 2007 ruling by the Ontario Divisional Court. The appeal court's findings led to challenges on the relevance of other witnesses' testimony by three parties with standing at the inquiry: the Children's Aid Society, the Cornwall police, and the lawyer representing Father Charles MacDonald and the estate of probation officer Ken Seguin. The Cornwall police also claimed the appeal court's ruling placed the investigation of Earl Landry Jr. falls outside the inquiry's mandate. Landry Jr. was the son of former Cornwall police chief Earl Landry Sr. He pleaded guilty to five counts of sexually abusing young boys between 1979 and 1990.
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