Former immigration judge late for own court date

Former immigration judge late for own court date - The Globe and Mail

Breach of trust trial after a South Korean woman alleged
he offered to secure her legal status in Canada if she would have an
affair with him.

Kate Hammer

Toronto — From Tuesday's Globe and Mail, Monday, Jun. 08, 2009 11:23PM EDT

Former Immigration and Refugee Appeal Board judge Steve Ellis arrived in court nearly an hour late Monday, delaying proceedings on allegations that he offered to approve an immigration application in exchange for sexual favours.

His suit pockets rumpled and his smoky curls askew, Mr. Ellis arrived shortly after Madam Justice Tamarin Dunnet of the Ontario Superior Court of Justice issued a bench warrant for his arrest.

Monday's appearance was to set a date for his trial.

Mr. Ellis was charged with two counts of breach of trust in 2006, after a South Korean woman alleged he met with her outside his chambers and offered to secure her legal status in Canada if she would have an affair with him.

The woman's boyfriend recorded a meeting with Mr. Ellis and submitted it to the chair of the Immigration and Refugee Board.

The video, obtained by CTV, shows Mr. Ellis meeting with the woman outside his chambers and bringing her confidential case file with him.

The tape reveals him saying: “Let me see what I can do. I'm going to work on it. I really want to be friends with you.”

The 45-minute video shows Mr. Ellis offering to help the woman find work and suggesting that he can approve her application if she agrees to an affair. The video records him telling her not to tell her boyfriend, and cautions that they'll “both be screwed” if the arrangement comes to light.

More than two hours after he was first scheduled to appear, Mr. Ellis, who once served as a city councillor, addressed the courtroom.

“I got here as a soon as I could,” he said.

He apologized but did not offer an explanation for the delay.

Mr. Ellis represented himself, but said he was “very close” to securing “very senior” counsel.

The matter was held until Friday to give Mr. Ellis time to sort out his legal representation before dates are set for his trial.

After Mr. Ellis left the courtroom, camera operators and reporters pursued him through the courthouse's back hallways toward Osgoode Hall.

He had no comment.