Adam Hayden figures the troubles in his life started at age 16 — when his father committed suicide by shooting himself in their Southern Shore home while Adam, his two brothers and mother were home.
Growing up, Hayden said he and his family witnessed many of his father’s violent, alcohol-fuelled tirades.
“He picked up a gun more than once,” Hayden said. “It was to scare us, like when he’d tell us to go to bed.”
He and many others who spoke at Hayden’s sentencing hearing at provincial court in St. John’s Wednesday figure that incident had a huge impact in what would become a long involvement with crime.
“I thought I overcame it, but I didn’t,” the 32-year-old Hayden said, holding back tears. “I get depressed.”
On Nov. 23, 2018, Hayden picked up a gun of his own, walked into TD Bank on Kelsey Drive in St. John’s wearing a face mask and demanded employees give them money. Another man with Hayden was also wearing a mask and was carrying a knife.
It happened at 7:45 p.m., just before closing time.
Hayden came over the counter, pointed the gun at employees’ heads and said, “Give us the money. Don’t mess with us. Don’t make me shoot you tonight.”
Hayden and the other masked man ordered them not to touch alarm buttons or phones.
One of the masked men was heard yelling, “Does anyone want to die tonight?”
Hayden pointed a gun to a male employee’s back and forced him to go to a back room to get money out of the safe, saying, “Open it now or I’ll shoot you.”
Hayden then shot at the floor in front of the man. Surveillance video from inside the bank, played in the courtroom, shows the man’s body jumping at the blast. Other employees in front of the store later told police they thought Hayden shot him.
With money falling out of their pockets as they ran out, Hayden and the other masked man drove off in a red truck. In total, they took off with USD $18,500 and $210 of Canadian money – and a dye pack.
During the robbery, a man had arrived at the bank to go to the ATM machine, while his wife waited in their vehicle. But when he saw what was happening, he called 911. After Hayden and the other masked man ran out of the bank and drove off, the couple followed the truck onto Pippy Place, where it crashed into a snow bank.
The other masked man — the driver — got out of the truck and ran.
Travis Wade was arrested shortly afterwards and has been charged in the incident. Police say he had a knife, 18.5 cm long, and $1,585 in cash and change on him at the time of his arrest. He has a preliminary inquiry set for September.
When Hayden took off from the crashed truck, he ran onto Kenmount Road, where he tried to hijack a vehicle. However, the driver, Darrell Crocker, an off-duty police officer, grabbed Hayden and the firearm. Crocker slammed Hayden to the ground and held him until police arrived.
Hayden still had the ski mask, along with USD $7,300.
The gun that police seized was a sawed-off, model MO 153, 12-gauge shotgun with the serial number obliterated.
Most of the cash taken from the bank was damaged by the exploding dye pack.
Hayden pleaded guilty to seven charges in connection with the incident — armed robbery, having his face masked, intentionally and recklessly discharging a firearm, using a firearm to commit an offence, possessing a prohibited firearm, pointing a firearm and attempting to rob Crocker’s vehicle. He also pleaded guilty to one count of theft under $5,000, when he tried to steal a cart-load of food from Sobeys on Merrymeeting Road the morning before the robbery.
“Underneath it all — and I’m not trying to diminish the seriousness of his crimes — I believe he wants all this nonsense to stop.” — Kevin Foley, Turnings
Hayden told the court that while he’s served a lot of time in jail over the years, he was on the straight in the four years.
“I was just sick of it – sick of being in and out of jail and plus, (my girlfriend and I) had a child on the way,” he said.
However, he said, a few months before the bank robbery, he had become depressed and he started abusing drugs again – using a lot of cocaine and valium, along with alcohol. As a result, he said his girlfriend kicked him out and he still hadn’t found a job.
“I felt horrible,” said Hayden, who said he was extremely high and drunk when he committed the robbery. “It’s hard to explain. I felt bad for just letting everyone down.”
Hayden insisted that this would be the last time he would get in trouble with the law and he apologized to the victims, his family and friends.
“It’s not fair what I did,” he said. “They still got to live with everything.”
Hayden’s mother, Miriam Swain, his girlfriend’s father Gerard Morrissey and Kevin Foley from Turnings, who counselled Hayden over the past number of years, all testified that Hayden was a loving father to his young daughter and two step-daughters. They agree he lost his way due to traumatic experiences in his life as well as drug and alcohol abuse.
“Adam is extremely sincere,” said Foley, who got emotional at one point, “Underneath it all — and I’m not trying to diminish the seriousness of his crimes — I believe he wants all this nonsense to stop.”
There were also letters of support from others, including his brother and a doctor.
Defence lawyer Randy Piercey said given the fact he has a supportive family, that he’s been impacted by traumatic events in his life and he has a desire to turn his life around now has his children to consider, eight years in prison would be an appropriate sentence.
However, Crown prosecutor Tannis King said Hayden has had plenty of opportunities to turn his life around, but hasn’t, despite all the counselling and treatment he’s received over the years while behind bars.
She said Hayden had the same kind of letters of support about seven years ago, the last time he was sentenced for offences.
“The loving opinions of his family and friends doesn’t change the fact that his individual resorts to violence when he wants or needs something. — Tanis King
“The loving opinions of his family and friends doesn’t change the fact that his individual resorts to violence when he wants or needs something,” said King, who added Hayden’s crimes have escalated over the years.
In addressing the issue of him saying he was depressed, King said there no evidence of that — only what he told the court.
“Lots of people are depressed, but he chooses to go into a bank instead of availing of resources” she said.
“It’s not up to the justice system to fix someone like Adam Hayden. It’s up to him.”
She stressed the danger of his actions, adding his efforts to try and evade capture created the potential for more damage.
“The path of destruction that followed him could have been horrific,” she said.
King said knowing his father killed himself with a gun, “he then chooses to take a loaded gun into a bank and discharge it. He can see the terror and trauma he’s causing those people. (The male employee) must’ve had nightmares. Imagine having a gun go off right next to you.”
King said Hayden seems to be “so entrenched in a criminal lifestyle” that rehabilitation may not be the only thing the judge should consider in sentencing. She said the primary focus should be the protection of the public.
That’s why, she said, Hayden should get a 13-year jail term.
Judge Jackie Brazil will render her decision July 3.
Twitter: @TelyRosie
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