Court ordered
surgical masks WebPosted Aug 16
1999 5:15 PM PDT
VANCOUVER - The nine Korean sailors who
dropped a boatload of Chinese migrants off the Queen Charlotte
Islands appeared in a Victoria courtroom today under unusual
circumstances. The judge ordered all staff and spectators to
wear surgical masks for their own protection.
Judge Jean Harvey said the nine Korean sailors pose a
health and safety concern for those in the courtroom. The
judge offered no other explanation. Even the prosecution and
defense lawyers said they didn't know the exact nature of the
threat. But it was enough for the judge to ask the next stage
of the court hearings be conducted by video conferencing.
The Koreans who filed into the courtroom looked healthy
enough, each wearing dark green overalls and relying on an
interpreter to explain the words of the judge and the lawyers.
They're all facing charges of facing a person to disembark a
ship at sea. Police are continuing to investigate whether
other charges should be laid.
In spite of the health threat, police say the Koreans are
not being quarantined and will be locked up with other
prisoners also awaiting trial. So for now, the nature of their
condition remains uncertain.
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