The court case against veteran Barrie police officer and former National Hockey League player Bruce Gardiner will continue in a local courtroom in March.
Counsel for Sgt. Gardiner, who is facing charges of extortion and criminal harassment, appeared virtually in trial scheduling court this afternoon (Jan. 31), at which time a date for a half-day discovery preliminary hearing was set for March 25 beginning at 9:30 a.m.
According to Ontariocourts.ca, a discovery preliminary inquiry can occur at any time before committal for trial. This hearing is where the evidence of a witness may be taken by means of a discovery process if the parties and the preliminary inquiry judge agree.
When the charges against Gardiner were announced in February 2022, Barrie police said the alleged events occurred while he was off duty between 2016 and 2018, and stemmed from conduct toward another member of the city's police department.
Gardiner, 52, was formally charged on Feb. 4, 2022.
In July 2021, former Barrie police chief Kimberley Greenwood said she learned of the allegations and ordered an investigation into Gardiner’s conduct. He was immediately suspended from duty with pay.
An investigation by the department’s Professional Standards Unit resulted in the two criminal charges being laid.
There is a publication ban in place on information heard in court.
None of the allegations against Gardiner have been tested in court.
Gardiner played in 312 NHL games, scoring 34 goals and adding 54 assists during stops in Ottawa, Tampa Bay, Columbus and New Jersey between 1996-97 and 2001-02. He was selected in the sixth round (131st overall) of the 1991 NHL Entry Draft by the St. Louis Blues.
He also played with the Barrie Colts Junior B team in the late 1980s, when they were in the Central Ontario Hockey League, before playing college hockey with Colgate University in Hamilton, N.Y.
Gardiner’s hockey career also included stops in the Russian Super League and Finland. His professional hockey career ended in the 2004-05 season with the Adirondack Frostbite of the United Hockey League.
Gardiner came up through the Barrie Minor Hockey Association and was inducted in the Barrie Sports Hall of Fame in 2017.
