Mike Duffy trial: Attending funerals part of senators' responsibilities, court hears

The lawyer for Mike Duffy defended a series of funerals his clientattended and expensed for thousands of dollars, suggesting that it waspart ofhis "regional responsibilities" as a senator.

Duffy has pleaded not guilty to 31 charges of fraud, breach of trust and bribery related to expenses he claimed as a senatorand later repaidwith money from the prime minister's former chief of staff,NigelWright.

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According to theRCMPcharge sheet, some ofthe chargesDuffy faces includethose related to"inappropriate expense claims associated with personal attendance at funerals and related ceremonies."

Duffy is alleged to have filed at least five travel expense claims between April 2009 and March 2012for these funerals and ceremonies.

Court heard today about three funerals Duffy attended in P.E.I. one for RobertLeClair, a former polling captain in P.E.I, one for Cliff Stewart, a Second World Warvet and former spy, andone for IsobelDeBlois, a descendentof GeorgeColes,a Father of Confederation. The travel expenses to attend the funerals totalledmore than $7,000.

Duffy read scripture for the funeral ofLeClairand gave a eulogy atthe funeral ofDeBlois, who was also a friend of Duffy's mother, court heard.

ThaneArsenault, who was coached byLeClairin high school basketball, was asked by Duffy's lawyer DonaldBayneif he was "aware that it's well recognized that senators have regional responsibilities?"

"Yes,"Arsenaultsaid.

"And funerals are an important public paying of respect to community members?"Bayneasked. "I would like to think so,"Arsenaultreplied.

Bayne also highlightedthe accomplishments of those who had died, suggesting their prominence justified Duffy's presence at their funerals.

Stewart, who had trained at Camp X, the Canadian spy training camp, was a "special man for many reasons, would you agree with that," Bayne asked MyrnaSanderson, a friend of Stewart.

"One hundred per cent," she said.

"My family, when we saw Senator Duffy at the funeral, we thought that he was representing the federal government to honour this man," she added. "That was our feeling. Not because he was Cliff's friend but because he was representing thegovernment."

Baynetook the same tactic whencross-examiningAlison Swan, funeral director of MacLean Funeral Home Swan Chapel in Charlottetown, who hadbeen askedto testify about the funeral of DeBlois.

But Swan didn't seem ready to followBayne'snarrative.

"In terms of P.E.I.life, we're talking about a woman who was part of a very important VIP-typefamily on the island, is that fair?" Bayne asked.

"I would suspect that would be fairin theearlier years. Yes," Swansaid.

"If you're partof the descendants of one of the Fathers of Confederation, and the first premier of the province, you don't kind oflose that status over the years,"Bayne said.

"Well, itcould be debatable at times, Swann said, prompting laughter in the courtroom.

"All right," a somewhat dejected Bayne said, giving up on the point. "I'm certainly not going to argue with that because I don't know all the .. politics of the island."

The trial,which began April 7 in the Ontario Court of Justice in Ottawa, is into its 26thday.Court has already heard of previoustrips Duffy took that theCrown alleges were for eitherpersonal orpartisan reasons and should not have been expensed to the Senate.

But Bayne has countered that these trips were all related to parliamentary work, and that the expenses are justified