2 violent offenders charged with assaulting Dennis Oland in prison

Two violent offenders have been charged with assaulting Dennis Olandin a New Brunswick prison last summer.

Cody Alexander Muise, 27,and Aaron Marriott, 26, areaccused of assaulting Oland at the Atlantic Institution in Renous on July 31.

No details about the alleged assault have been released, but because the alleged assault occurred at a maximum security prison, the Crown is proceeding by way of indictment, rather than the lesser summary offence of assault.

Indictable assault carries a maximum sentence of five years in prison.

Muise, who is serving a life sentence for first-degree murder in a Nova Scotia shooting death, and Marriott, who is serving a 15-year sentence for attempted murder in a Nova Scotia shooting,both appeared in Miramichi provincial court on Jan. 12.Neither entered a plea.

• Cody Muise, convicted of killing Brandon Hatcher, loses appeal
• IWK shooter Marriott sentenced to 15 years

They are scheduled to return to court on Feb. 9 at 1:30 p.m. to elect howthey want to be tried by judge alone or by judge and jury.

Oland, his family and his defence team alldeclined to comment Thursday.

"We have no comment," the family's lawyer, Bill Teed, said in an email to CBC News on their behalf.

Oland, 48, was sentenced in February 2016 to life in prison with no chance of parole for at least 10 years after ajury found him guilty of second-degree murder in the 2011 bludgeoning death of his father, multimillionaire Saint John businessman Richard Oland.

Oland spent about 10 months in custody, but wasreleased on bail under conditions on Oct. 25, after the New Brunswick Court of Appeal overturned his conviction and ordered a new trial, citing an error in the trial judge's instructions to the jury.

Crown prosecutors announced earlier this month that they plan to appeal that decision to the Supreme Court of Canada.

Oland's defence team expects to cross-appeal, seeking an acquittal instead of a retrial.

The Supreme Court is not obligated to hear the matter. It receives about 600 applications for leave to appealeach year. Only about 80 are granted.

If a new trial goes ahead, it is not expected to be heard until 2018.

Muiseis serving a life sentence for first-degree murder after being convicted in the 2010 shooting death of BrandonHatcher.

Hatcherwas killedin front of hisSpryfieldhome in a gun battle withMuiseand two other men. The pair had exchanged threatening texts and phone calls earlier in the day andMuisebelievedHatcherhad made two previous attempts on his life, the trial heard.

Muise failed in his attemptto get his conviction overturned by the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal in 2015.

Marriott is serving a 15-year sentence for attempted murder in connection with ashooting outside a children's hospital inHalifax eight years ago.

He was 18 years old when he shot and injuredJasonHallettoutside the IWK Health Centre on Nov. 18, 2008.Hefired several shots at close range from a handgun intoa Jeep Cherokee, the trial heard.Hallettwas wounded in the wrist.

Marriott pleaded guilty in 2011 and was sentenced to 15 years in prison with no credit for the 29 months he spent in pre-trial custody, based on a joint recommendation by the Crown and defence.

Some of his co-accused received sentences of between five and 10 years.

Marriottunsuccessfully appealed his sentence to the Nova Scotia Court of Appeal in 2012 and the Supreme Court of Canada refused to hear his appeal in 2015.

The prison in Renous "accommodates all maximum-security offenders in the Atlantic region [who] cannot be managed in any other facility," according to its website.

It has a triangular design, with an estimated 240 inmates in direct-observation living units.

The prison is about30 kilometres from the city of Miramichi.

The RCMP northeast district laid the charges.