Sask. man accused of abducting his daughter takes stand in his own defence

The man charged with abducting his seven-year-old daughter took the stand in a Regina courtroom Monday morning.

Michael Gordon Jackson allegedly failed to return his seven-year-old daughter to the care of her mother in 2021.

Witnesses have testified that Jackson took his daughter to B.C. in 2021 because he did not want her to get the COVID-19 vaccine.

Jackson is representing himself in the trial at Regina Court of King's Bench and called himself as the defence's first witness.

"I firmly believe the Crown has already proven my case," Jackson said in a brief opening statement.

He asked the jury to "have an open mind."

Jackson then made his way to the witness stand and said he was "nervous."

He spent part of the morning discussing his concerns over having his daughter vaccinated back in the fall of 2021 and what he said was a lack of communication from his ex about her intentions regarding the vaccine.

He said he "had a very bad divorce" and had shared custody with his ex-wife. CBC has chosen not to name the mother in an effort to protect the identity of the daughter.

Jackson said that at the outset of the pandemic he was "quite concerned" about COVID and he "didn't want my daughter getting COVID."

He said he began doing a lot of "research" on the internet, particularly YouTube.

"The research didn't line up to what the government was telling us. That broke my heart to see my seven-year-old daughter wearing a mask at school," Jackson said.

"There was no way I was going to let them inject that stuff into my seven-year-old daughter."

Jackson told the court he had been trying to have a dialogue about the vaccine with his ex for "eight months."

As the approval process for child COVID vaccine got closer, "things got pretty desperate for me."

"They're going to say what I did was over the top," Jackson told the jury.

Jackson said that when he was informed by his ex through her lawyer that she would follow the government's advice and get their daughter vaccinated, "there was no hope."

"I will not release my daughter to be vaccinated."

Jackson then played two 911 calls he made on the afternoon of Dec. 1, 2021. His daughter was with him at the time.

Jackson claimed in the calls that he was being harassed by the local RCMP detachment. He told the operator he felt fearful for his and his daughter's lives.

In the second call, Jackson told a different operator, "it needs to stop now or somebody's going to get hurt."

"Somebody's going to do something or I'm going to have to do something myself."

The operator told him he could not make a threat and could face legal consequences.

Jackson has pleaded not guilty to abduction and is representing himself in the trial. He took the stand on Monday. (CBC News)

After playing the calls, Jackson told the jury he requested to have the decision on vaccination delayed.

He read a list of alleged adverse reactions to the COVID-19 vaccine from 2021, and said that even if there was one adverse reaction he "never would have agreed."

"Once the needle is in the arm it's done."

Jackson said that when his request for a delay in the vaccination decision was not granted, he went into hiding.

"I didn't think there was any remedy in the court."

Jackson said friends helped pay his bills. He said he did not intend to hide "for the rest of our lives."

He said he had negotiations with RCMP for his daughter's return, but insisted the one condition was she would not be vaccinated.

"I had to be guaranteed [she] would not be vaccinated."

Jackson said he was arrested in a parking lot on Feb. 22, 2022, shortly after a phone conversation with the Justice Centre for Constitutional Freedom asking them to take up his cause. His phone had been tracked.

During cross-examination, Crown prosecutor Zoey Kim-Zeggelaar asked Jackson about the process of his decision to go into hiding.

When asked how long he was prepared to be gone, he replied, "if they were going to vaccinate her I was not going to return."

Jackson said he got rid of his cellphone and arranged to have his property looked after before leaving for B.C. with his daughter.

When asked, Jackson agreed that he had taken his daughter for two and a half months and that no one knew where they were.

Jackson disagreed that what he did was extreme, although he noted he was not aware of another parent who had done something similar in Canada.

"It may seem extreme. I felt I did the right thing." he said.

Jackson closed his case without calling any other witnesses.

Final arguments are scheduled for Thursday, with the jury to be charged afterward.