That time rock legend Jimi Hendrix was put on trial in Toronto

Toronto has seen its fair share of music stars roll through Pearson Airport over the decades, but no one has made an entrance quite like rock and roll legend Jimi Hendrix.

Landing at Toronto International Airport (now Pearson) ahead of a sold-out 1969 show at Maple Leaf Gardens, Hendrix was stopped by customs for a suspicious substance found in his luggage.

What followed was a surreal mix of courtroom drama, fan frenzy, and, despite the arrest, an unforgettable show from the legendary guitar god.

The lead-up

Detailed in the book Hendrix: Setting the Record Straight by John McDermott, it was on May 3, 1969, when Jimi Hendrix and the Experience came to Toronto from Detroit — where whispers of a drug bust surrounded them.

Brushing off the suggestion of drug possession, the "Purple Haze" artist was pulled aside by security who suspected him of having "illicit substances" in his bag.

After creating a mobile test lab, it was found that the substances in Hendrix’s bag were a bottle that had three packets of heroin and a tube with hashish residue — which prompted an arrest.

The arrest

As Hendrix was taken into police custody, there was concern over how this would affect the performance that was scheduled for that night.

But those fears were swayed by a detective who told the band’s manager that his kids had tickets to the concert and, according to the Hendrix biography Electric Gypsy, "they'll kill me if I don't get him out."

The musician's bail was set at $10,000, which his trial lawyer and former Ontario judge John O'Driscoll had allegedly convinced Maple Leaf Gardens to front so the concert could go as scheduled. Hendrix was then escorted to the venue by police to make his 8 p.m. call time.

Despite the circumstances, the "Voodoo Child" artist's demeanour was described as "jovial." He made no mention of the arrest other than an ad-lib during the blues number "Red House," singing "soon as I get out of jail, I wanna see her."

News of Hendrix’s arrest didn’t make headlines until May 5 — the same day he was scheduled for his arraignment hearing.

The trial

The Old City Hall courthouse was filled with young fans, with the hearing lasting approximately three minutes. It was there that the judge set his preliminary hearing for June 19, which determined the trial date of Dec. 8.

During his trial, having pivoted his colourful rock star look to a more conservative, tailored suit, Hendrix testified that the illicit substances found were not his.

He told the Toronto court of a party he threw in his Los Angeles hotel room and, having complained about an upset stomach, a party-goer gave him what he thought was the antacid Bromo-Seltzer and put it in his bag.

In Canada, for a possession charge to stick, the Crown needs to prove you are knowingly in possession of illegal substances, which Hendrix testified he was not.

O'Driscoll also backed up this claim with eyewitness testimony of Hendrix's account from United Press International reporter Sharon Lawrence, and a look of "surprise" by Hendrix when the drugs were found by the customs official who discovered the substances, Mervin Wilson.

The aftermath

Hendrix was found “not guilty” by the Toronto jury three days later, stating that Canada had given him “the best Christmas present [he] ever had”.

It’s unclear how the substances ended up in Hendrix’s bag, but an article by Rolling Stone on May 31, 1969, claimed that they might have been planted as part of a setup. The authors of the article questioned why the RCMP were there when the drugs were found, as the RCMP “customarily do not wait at the airport to make dope busts.”

It is reported by those close to Hendrix at the time that this trial had weighed on him for the seven months between his arrest and his trial — with many concert promoters not wanting to book him until the outcome of the trial was complete.

Unfortunately, this was the last time the guitarist came to Toronto, as Hendrix died Sept. 18, 1970, in London at the age of 27.