Murder case involving former Prince Albert RCMP officer faces delays

A scheduled preliminary hearing next week for a former Prince Albert RCMP officer charged with first degree murder has been postponed five months.

The simple reason provided to paNOW by Prosecutor Bill Burge, was that the 53-year-old had to find a new lawyer.

Herman’s former lawyer, Brad Mitchell was, in November, appointed a provincial court judge. The file has now been turned over to Darren K. Kraushaar at the McDougall Gauley Law Firm in Regina. Kraushaar was unavailable for comment on Friday.

Herman is facing a charge of first degree murder in the death earlier this year of 26-year-old Braden Herman.

On the evening of May 11, police were called to a densely wooded area near Little Red River Park. It’s there that they found the victim’s body. Bernie Herman was arrested on May 12 and has been out on bail since June.

Over the summer he attended his daughter’s wedding.

Police have previously confirmed that while the victim and the accused share the same last name and are both from the La Loche area, they are not related. Family members have described the relationship as one time comparable between a father and son, but also mentioned the two men had a falling out.

Bernie Herman, who had nearly 30 years experience with the RCMP, formally resigned on May 19 and the notice took effect on June 1. Prior to his arrest, he had been working with the traffic services division at the Prince Albert RCMP detachment.

While Bernie Herman was not on duty at the time of the incident, Prince Albert Police Service Insp. Craig Mushka told reporters he left work in full uniform with his duty belt on the day it occurred.

Mushka also said Bernie Herman had phoned a co-worker and made “disturbing” comments that he had killed someone. Bernie Herman was later taken into custody without incident and provided information on where the police could locate the victim.

A not guilty plea was entered in June and the pre-trial hearing was scheduled to start the week of Dec. 13. The hearing will now take place the week of May 30.

The purpose of the hearing is to hear the crown’s evidence, and see if there’s enough for the accused to face trial.