Michael Ellis

Westside Road shooter could get dangerous offender status

KELOWNA – The man who shot at police as he and two accomplices fled from police along Westside Road in 2012 will be evaluated by a psychiatrist to determine if he is a dangerous offender. In late February, Michael Ellis, 41, was found guilty of unlawful discharge of a prohibited weapon, armed robbery, attempted robbery,...

Westside Road shooter not guilty of attempted murder

KELOWNA – Michael Ellis, the man accused of shooting at police as he and two others tried to escape along Westside Road in 2012, was found not guilty of attempted murder but could still face a lengthy jail term after he was found guilty of more than a dozen other related charges. Justice Ian Josephson...

Accused Westside shooter trial coming to an end

"THE CASE BECOMES STRONGER WITH EACH PASSING KILOMETRE." KELOWNA – Was Michael Ellis only doing what he was told when he led police on a high speed shootout along Westside Road in 2012 or is his friend and former co-accused taking the blame because he knows it can’t affect his sentence? That was the focus...

Two of three Westside Road shooters sentenced

KELOWNA - Two of the three people involved in the infamous Westside Road shooting that took police on a 60-kilometre chase from West Kelowna to Vernon in 2012 were sentenced in Kelowna Supreme Court Friday. Shawn Wysynski, 34, pleaded guilty and will serve nine years in federal prison for using a loaded gun to carjack...

Passenger during Westside Road police shootout says he was in charge

LANGUAGE ADVISORY KELOWNA – Michael Ellis, accused ringleader of a 2012 high speed shootout with police, was just doing what he was told. At least that’s what his only defence witness says. Shawn Wysynski, who is also a lifelong friend of Ellis, told Kelowna Supreme Court Justice Ian Josephson that the only reason his friends were...

Witness shot at three times, continues following

KELOWNA – A witness who took the stand in the attempted murder trial of accused Westside Road shooter Michael Ellis was shot at three separate times, but still refused to stop following him. Michael James Scott is an onsite construction supervisor with the Ministry of Transportation. He was in his work truck on Westside Road...

Westside shooter threatened man and his young son

KELOWNA – The encounter lasted only a few minutes but left a strong impression on Mark Langmead and his 11-year-old son. “It was very disturbing,” he told Justic Ian Josephson in the B.C. Supreme Court trial of accused Westside shooter Michael Ellis Tuesday. “(My son) was very upset. He was extremely quiet and refused to...

Witness testimonies conflict in Westside shooter trial

KELOWNA – Conflicting testimonies were heard Monday in the Supreme Court attempted murder case of accused Westside Road shooter Michael Ellis. Darren Fayant and his wife Gwynn were in West Kelowna for a vacation July 31, 2012. They had just left Mission Hill Winery and were stopped at the intersection of Mission Hill Road and...

“SHOTS FIRED:” Cop testifies suspect shot at police truck, car

KELOWNA – Details of the first few moments of a 2012 high speed chase and shootout with police along Westside Road included testimony in Kelowna Supreme Court from two plainclothes RCMP officers who say they were shot at from a vehicle driven by the accused, Michael Ellis. Const. Mike Taylor and Const. Michael Philion of...

Trial begins for man accused of shooting at police

KELOWNA – Dozens of witnesses and roughly 100 pieces of evidence are expected over the coming weeks in the attempted murder trial of a man accused of shooting at police and motorists during a high speed chase on Westside Road in 2012. Michael Ellis, 41, is alleged to be one of three people who fled...

Tearful testimony from cops who thought they were going to die

KELOWNA – Two RCMP constables, testifying in the Kelowna Supreme Court trial of accused Westside Road shooter Michael Ellis Thursday afternoon, relived a day they will never forget. Const. Tara Schneider was working general duty in Vernon the afternoon of July 31, 2012 when a call that police were in pursuit of a suspect who...