David Ahenakew's lawyer says the reporter who wrote the newspaper article that led to the aboriginal leader being charged with a hate crime should have been charged with the same offence.

Doug Christie told court Wednesday that James Parker, a former reporter with the Saskatoon StarPhoenix newspaper, knowingly disseminated hate by publicizing Ahenakew's anti-Semitic comments.

"Who distributed the allegedly hateful words?" said Christie, who argues that Ahenakew thought he was having a private conversation with Parker when he praised Adolf Hitler and the Holocaust.

David Ahenakew in Saskatoon, Sask. Wednesday.

"If it had been Dr. Ahenakew, no one else would have heard them other than him and Mr. Parker. Mr. Parker had a story that was the best he could hope for in his life."

Parker covered a conference on aboriginal health in December of 2002, when Ahenakew – a former senator with the Federation of Saskatchewan Indian Nations and a member of the Order of Canada – made a speech in which he blamed Jews for starting the Second World War.

Parker spoke to Ahenakew outside the conference, recording their conversation.

Doug Christie, David Ahenakew's lawyer.

In the interview, which was played in court Monday, Ahenakew referred to Jews as "a disease" and said Hitler "made damn sure" Jews didn't take over Germany and Europe. "That's why he fried six million of those guys," Ahenakew said.

The publication of the comments resulted in Ahenakew being charged with the wilful promotion of hatred against an identifiable group.

Lawyer accuses reporter of grudge against native group

As the hate trial continued in a Saskatoon court on Wednesday, Christie, who has defended Holocaust deniers such as Ernst Zundel and Jim Keegstra, attempted to shift the blame to Parker.

He tried to paint Parker – who was the first witness for the prosecution – as an ambitious reporter who took advantage of an older man to get the story of a lifetime.

Christie also accused Parker of writing the story to try to get even with the Federation of Saskatchewan Indians Nations after some run-ins with the organization over earlier reporting.

Christie told reporters that Parker should be charged with promoting hate.

Parker, whose newspaper was invited to cover the meeting, denied the accusations.

He acknowledged that he knew he had a "big" story, but said the potential for charges against Ahenakew never crossed his mind.

On Tuesday, a provincial court judge presiding over the trial turned down Christie's motion to throw out tapes of the speech Ahenakew gave in 2002 and the subsequent interview with Parker.

• FROM APRIL 6, 2005: Judge rules Crown can use Ahenakew tapes

Ahenakew, now 71, apologized for his comments and bowed out of public life in an attempt to make amends.

The trial is scheduled to continue Thursday.

If found guilty, Ahenakew could face up to six months in jail.