Supreme injustice

In 2003 the governing Liberal Party of Canada foisted a supreme injustice upon this country with the Youth Criminal Justice Act or YCJA.  Many police officers in Canada think YCJA stands for You Can't Jail Adolescents, so weak was the legislation.  

But count on the Supreme Court of Canada to take an already weak piece of legislation and make it weaker still.  And in the case of Regina vs D.B. 2008 25  they did not disappoint.

Back when I was a young police officer we had the Juvenile Delinquents Act as our governing authority when dealing with the teenaged scumbags - oh sorry, poor little devils who weren't breast fed and or their mommies drank and their daddies deserted them and boo hoo hoo - who seem to think that the rule of law doesn't apply to them unless and until they get caught. Then they were happy to piss and moan about how hard done by they are and how it isn't their fault.

Back then, we would complain about how the JDA was so lenient on juvies and how they couldn't give a fig because nothing would happen to them.  I remember a cop who used to mail a birthday card to 'frequent flyers' wishing them a Happy Birthday when they turned eighteen. Inside was a photo of a pair of handcuffs and a bullet.  The implication was obvious; now that you are an adult, I'm coming to get you.

 

The JDA was replaced with another weak-kneed statute called the Young Offenders Act (YOA) which was later replaced with the YCJA.  All of this nonsense is created by the hand-wringers who simply cannot or will not understand that some of these criminal thugs are incorigible and irreparable as human beings.

The Supremes said that we can't impose statutory reverse onus positions on the little darlings. It's unfair to treat these charming young folks as adults unless Crown can absolutely prove that the crimes committed, be it murder most horrible as occurred in case of Rena Virk or the teens involved in the senseless and most brutal killing of 13 year old Nina Courtepatte.  

Much has been written about the killing of Nina Courtepatte.  But what has not been said is that for several hours she was raped and tortured and for a long period of time she was badly injured and knew she was going to die. And she pleaded for her killers to finish her off. And they wouldn't. They did it slow and very painfully.  

You simply cannot view the circumstances of a file like that and not come to the conclusion that those involved are evil. And evil should never see the light of day ever again. 

But that will not be the case for the killers of Nina Courtepatte.  The adults, such as they were, will some day be eligible for parole.  The juveniles will be free in far too short a period of time. And Nina, unfortunately, will be forgotten.

And the Supreme Court of Canada  decided that the legislation that protected the people instrumental in the murder of little Nina Courtepatte are being unfairly done by politicians who haven't a clue about the real problems in this country.

If the Supreme Court of Canada had any conscience or morals, they would be ashamed of themselves for not doing the right thing.   

And if my Aunt had balls she would be my Uncle.

Leo Knight

primetimecrime@gmail.com

Failed again . . .

A week ago, a story appeared in The Province about a rather innocuous sign of the times - thefts of bags from unsuspecting visitors at Vancouver International Airport.

But, what was glossed over was the identification of an arrested suspect in the spate of thefts. Ramon Rafael Montesinos Chavoro, 36, was arrested, charged with Theft over $5000 - an indictable offence in Canada - and released on $5,000 bail. And that’s not posted bail as in real dollars. No, indeed, that means “promised” dollars. Or, in more simple terms, nothing.

But, hang on a second, Chavoro is a Mexican national. Is he in Canada legally? And even if he is, why would we allow a foreign national to come here, allegedly commit a series of crimes and allow him to be freed on minor bail conditions?

Does he have a previous criminal history in Canada? What about in his home country?

This is ridiculous at any level. Made especially moreso since we learned this week, courtesy of the federal Auditor General Shelia Fraser, that the Canadian Border Services Agency had lost track of 41,000 illegal immigrants, most of whom are failed refugee claimants. 

It seems that in this country it matters not whether you are a failed refugee claimant or a serial criminal, what passes for a justice system in Canada will let you go with little or no restrictions on your freedoms. 

I must confess I am at a loss here to try and understand whatever logic exists to pretend that such a system is somehow tolerable or that this system “works” by any definition.

Who are these 41,000 failed refugee claimants? I don’t know and the government won’t tell us. We don’t know if they are gypsy thieves, Russian strippers or al Qaeda terrorist. And the sad part is that the government hasn’t a clue either to go along with where they might be. 

But they do know who Chavoro is and what he’s all about. And yet the system still let him go instead of holding him in custody pending trial. And if, as is most likely, he is found guilty he should be deported after serving whatever sentence the court might impose. Which, of course would be nothing more than time served. But, at least the government could have packed him aboard a plane and sent him back to his homeland and in doing so, lived up to their responsibility to protect the public.

But sadly, that is not what happened in this case. Or in the thousands and thousands of others like this.

Leo Knight

Prime Time Crime.com

Immigration decision a mystery

It's difficult to try and be respectful of the Canadian justice system when you get decisions such as the one rendered by Immigration adjudicator Daphne Shaw Dyck in the case of Jose Franciso Cardoza Quinteros, an admitted killer and member of the notoriously violent Latino gang Mara Salvatrucha or more commonly known as MS 13.

But then, I have come to expect so very little of a system designed to be overseen by people with little or no training for the role they are performing. For most, it seems the only qualification is to have connections to whatever political party is in power and makes the appointments.

Now, I don't know the adjudicator with the double-barrelled family name. And, it may well be that from time to time she gets it right. But then, even a stopped clock is right twice a day.

What I can and will say is that she is so wrong in this case that one has to question her competence to sit in judgement of immigration claims. When a waste of oxygen like this has already admitted to being a member of MS 13 and a participant in gangland murders, I sincerely question her ability to process information presented.

How she came to the conclusion that this lothesome individial was likely not a gang banger because, well, I have no idea. She had no evidence before her that said this goof was anything but what he said he was.

The real problem here is not that this adjudicator went off the reservation in this case, but rather that there are so many of these 'appointees' in similar positions of power to put at risk the rest of society in Canada. And there is precious little we can do about it.

It seems that Pierre Trudeau's so called "Just Society" is really anything but.

Leo Knight

primetimecrime@gmail.com

And justice for all . . . to not see

No one will ever accuse me of being a defender of the Hells Angels. In point of fact, I am on record on many occasions saying that police must be given more tools and more resources to fight not only the bikers, but all aspects of organized crime. Which, I might add, notwithstanding the abdication of responsibility by Madame Justice Anne MacKenzie in the trial of full-patch member David Francis Giles, the Hells Angels are clearly a criminal organization as has been stated by courts in BC and Ontario in previous decisions.

Having said all that, there is something decidedly wrong with what has occurred in the sentencing of three unnamed members of the biker gang for contempt of court.

I don't know what has gone on in camera in this case in which Madame Justice MacKenzie agreed to a ban on publication of the names. And that is essentially the problem. The old adage is that Justice must not only be done, but it must be seen to be done.

How can we determine if justice was in fact done in this case if we cannot know the names and the details of the offense? Justice carried out behind a curtain is not justice in a democracy. It may pass for justice in a tin-pot dictatorship like Cuba, but it is not justice in my eyes.

Madame Justice MacKenzie demonstrated a profound lack of understanding of the Hells Angels and how their business operates in her judgement in Giles case. That lack of understanding is, in my view, a disservice to the public. The contempt citations against unnamed individuals who were allegedly a part of the criminal enterprise is nothing more than a furtherance of the disservice.

Leo Knight

primetimecrime@gmail.com

China Syndrome

On March 14th, 2008, the Government of the People's Republic of China began a crackdown on Tibetan citizens protesting against occupying power that began with the invasion of their country by the People's Liberation Army in 1950 and continues to this day.

The West, for the most part, immediately condemned the latest blatant human rights abuses by a government that seeks to dominate, if not the world, then all of Asia at the least. And, under the jackbooted heel of Communist tyranny. Well, the two front-runners for the Democratic Presidential nomination in the US, B. Hussein Obama and the former First Lady and current junior Senator from New York, who, amazingly enough, single-handedly ended 35 years of the troubles in Northern Ireland - well, that's what she said - were about 12 days late before recoiling in abject horror and metaphorically crying crocodile tears.

So, after sending in the troops to crush the demonstrations and forcing the oppressed people of Tibet into hiding, they actually announced that hundreds of the protestors had "surrendered." (See China says hundreds have surrendered)

Imagine that, surrendering to a regime that kills those people at will who don't or won't grasp the teachings of the Red Book. Yeah, I'll bet they were surendering in droves.

The Government of the PRC is a disgusting regime that engages in systemic human rights violations on a daily basis, never mind the brutal abuses such as have occured in Tibet in the past fortnight or Tianammen Square in the late 80's. Crushing a student protest in the Forbidden City or deluding a complicit Western media on Tibet, it's all the same: oppressive Communist regime takes advantage of the useful idiots in the Western media. Since the days of Lenin, nothing changes.

What puzzles, is why we continue to placate, ignore and turn a blind eye? Or, how exactly were the PRC actually awarded the Summer Olympics? Who did they buy?

Leo Knight

primetimecrime@gmail.com

The truth shall set you free . . .unless you are a federal civil servant

During times of universal deceit, telling the truth becomes a revolutionary act. – George Orwell

The story of former Foreign Services employee Joanna Gualtieri’s battle with the bureaucrats in the federal government should make every Canadian angry. Not just pissed about a waste of taxpayer’s money, but “I want a Revolution” angry.

Gaultieri bore witness and tried to report to corruption and waste and tried to do her job. Apparently, telling the truth is a big mistake in the civil service. Now the mandarins who earn their living by sucking on the public teat are trying to crush Gualteri under a ton of legal bullshit.

So Gualtieri is saying that some foreign consulates are wasting money. Hmmm . . .I’d be surprised if ALL foreign consulates aren’t wasting money. She is saying that corruption is present at some foreign missions. Again, I’d be surprised if there wasn’t an element of corruption at all foreign missions.

I’ve seen this movie time and again. This is all about covering bureaucratic ass and nothing to do with what is right. The Tories need to step in and put a stop to this poste haste. They didn’t create this mess or condone the cause of it. But by allowing it to proceed, they appear to be in agreement with the process. And that is very, very wrong.

Leo Knight
primetimecrime@gmail.com

Justice failed

I'm stunned. I have seen all manner of stupidity and hand-wringing social engineering nonsense coming from our courts in Canada, but nothing I had previously seen prepared me for the blatent nonsense which emanated from the BC Court of Appeal in the case of American accused murderer Vernon Maurice Walker.

Walker is accused of shooting a man in a Seattle alley in June , 2005. A witness picked him from a photo array of six individuals. But this identification wasn't good enough for Mr. Justice Ian Donald. Unbelieveably, he actually believes it was his duty to pontificate on the legitimacy of the photo identification and decided to release this 'alleged' murderer.

Walker came to Canada betting on the lenient criminal justice system in the hope that he would be able to hide from American justice after 'allegedly' committing a murder. And, just to prove his intentions were well-placed, Mr. Justice Donald gave credence to him with his flagrantly stupid judgement.

Yes, stupid. For I cannot fathom what great leap of mental gymnastics could possibly lead the supposedly learned judge to reach the conclusion that an eyewitness is not good enough to meet the test of whether there is a case to be met in the jurisdiction the murder was committed.

And that is the point. It is not within the purview of Mr. Justice Donald to determine guilt or innocence. But rather, it was his duty to determine whether there was sufficient evidence to have the individual placed before a court in the jurisdiction preferring the prosecution. In this case Seattle, not Moscow or Beijing. Seattle, in the state of Washington, in the United States of America. You know, in the cradle of democracy where individual rights trump everything. The place that sets the standard for the rest of the Western world.

And it was in that duty that Mr. Justice Donald failed and failed miserably.

And it is in that failure that he has put to risk another life because as sure as God made little green apples, Walker will not change his past behaviour, alleged though it may be, and become a God fearing, contributing member of our society. No, I'm willing to participate in any betting pool on when Walker will be arrested again.

One can only hope that the next person who falls victim to Walker won't be someone near and dear to me or thee.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

A systemic murder

Another senseless murder of an innocent person committed by someone who should not have been on the streets but for a weak, broken justice system.

Yesterday, police in Calgary charged Christopher James Watcheston, 21, with the murder of Arcelie Laoagan, a 41 year old mother of five whose battered body was found a week ago near a public transit station. He was on bail at the time of the murder.

Lawyer and justice commentator Scott Newark had this to say in an email about this case. It's worth sharing:

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So let's see.....guy gets charged with three assaults and doesn't make bail for a couple of weeks. That suggests maybe a history not revealed in story. Shortly after release he commits more crimes...while on bail which is literally a promise he wouldn't commit more crimes if court released him from charges of first set of crimes...but again he is released on bail and now charged in this murder.

A) We should be keeping track of this "profile" because quite literally the state had the capacity to have prevented this crime by taking notice of his continuing criminality but chose....consciously...to let him go...again....and take a chance...again....

B) There is a need for a review of the circumstances of the release of this person independent of the criminal trial. Did the Crown seek revocation of the original bail and oppose his release. If not, why not? Did the JP or provincial court judge reject such requests and order the release? Did someone say they would serve as a surety to enforce the deceptively described "house arrest".

What's needed is literally an examination of how the means of death came to be in a position to inflict death. These used to be done in Ontario by Coroner's Inquest and we recommended an amendment to the Coroner's Act (akin to when an inmate dies in custody) requiring an inquest when the person that unlawfully kills was released from lawful custody by the state and the amendment also stipulated that the releasing authority...including a judge or JP...is a compellable witness. There may be nothing "systemic" about this case but we'll never know if no one asks.

The justice system is about to go into 'we can't talk about it' mode supposedly to protect the accused's right to a fair trial. Co-incidentally it also helps cover the system's ass which is at least partially why these kinds of obviously preventable crimes keep occurring.

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Scott's last point is critical. The blatent nonsense so often used by elements in the justice system about why they cannot talk about their incompetence and ineffectiveness protects the system much more than the rights of an accused. That, perhaps, needs to get addressed before much can be done about a fundamentally broken justice system.

Leo Knight
leo@primetimecrime.com

Media manipulation

Seemingly, it doesn't matter where you look in the mainstream media these days, but in most stories there's a twist, a lean to the liberal left. It's especially apparent in the Globe & Mail or the official organ of the Liberal Party of Canada, The Toronto Star.  But it is even showing up now in the most innocuous of straight news stories.

I have spent much of the first month of this year flying hither and yon, spending interminable hours waiting at airports, reading a variety of local papers.  And I started seeing this trend where it never used to be and in stories you never used to see it.

In today's National Post, there was a news brief about a police raid on a home in Etobicoke, in east Toronto.  Police seized a sawed-off Ruger Mini 14, a clip which holds 19 rounds and 132 rounds of ammunition. The gun had been previously stolen.  A father and son, both justice system frequent flyers, were arrested.  All good.

But, to end the brief, some hand-wringing social engineer who toils away in some CanWest news room added this: The arrests came as Toronto Mayor David Miller called for a total ban on handgun ownership in the city.

What in the world does that have to do with the salient story? Absolutely nothing.  And why any self-respecting professional news editor would let that run probably speaks volumes.

In the first place the Mini 14 is a long-barelled weapon. Or at least it was in this case before it got sawed-off. And in the second place it was stolen.

This is simply the writer of the brief taking the opportunity to put Miller's idiocy out there one more time to give it credibility.

Miller is a fool in this with his knee-jerk pronouncement, but I object to the media treating it as though it makes sense and then espousing it again and again in the vain hope that readers will suddenly become as foolish as the Mayor of Toronto.

Fortunately, readers are smarter than that. Well, except for the voters in Toronto who elected David Miller.

Leo Knight
leo@primetimecrime.com

- Leo Knight on Blackberry

Double standard apparent

Well, the holidays are over and I managed to contain my vitriol whenever I came across yet another story about political correctness run amok. The controversy generated by the Elmdale Public School in the Ottawa area was perhaps the best example of political correctness in the lunatic fringe, in this case best espoused by teachers and their inevitably wrong union.

But the story over the holidays that really got me was the one about the suspension of Burnaby Mountie Richard Jacques for 10 days.

Constable Jacques was found guilty of abusing his position to help his girlfriend leave the scene of an accident. He was also found guilty on separate occasions, by either not following orders or failing to properly investigate crimes ranging from a break-and-enter to an attempted abduction. Pretty serious stuff one would think. But not serious enough to make the officer pay forfeit with his job.

So, if I understand this correctly, this member demonstrated he is not prepared to follow policy and, perhaps more to the point, lacked the integrity to follow the law and his duty and deliberately engaged in activity that should be more properly described as obstruction, a criminal code offence.

And for all of that, the RCMP gave Cst. Jacques a 10 day suspension. Ten days for turning his back on the oath he took and permanently destroying any credibility he would need to be involved in any prosecution he may be involved with in the future.

I’m appalled frankly. How is it that Cpl. Robert Read and Staff Sergeant Bob Stenhouse, were fired for doing nothing more than telling the truth and this guy gets a ten day rip?

There’s no question that both Read and Stenhouse coloured outside the lines as laid out within the RCMP when they spoke to folks outside the Force because the bureaucracy within was failing miserably. That was wrong. But if it was wrong enough to get fired, how in the world can the Force justify the continued employment of someone like Cst. Jacques?

Read and Stenhouse were trying to do the right thing and got fired by the pointy-headed bureaucrats that run the RCMP. Jacques was trying to circumvent the law and abused his position as a police officer. He will never again have the credibility necessary to mount a successful prosecution, something which is central to his job. Why isn’t the Force holding him up to the same standard as two members who were actually trying to do the right thing?

I have a major problem with this double standard.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Jailhouse violence no factor in justice

The lawyer for Michael "Pyro" Williams had the audacity to suggest to a court that his client, convicted in the brutal sex torture of 13 year old Nina Louise Courtepatte, would be at risk in the federal corrections system and the court should send him to a medium security facility.

Fortunately, the court would have none of it and Williams will go to the maximum security Edmonton Institution. Which, I might add, is a place society rightly reserves for its worst.

Courtepatte's murder has been well documented and the details still horrify. But to argue that because the act was so horrible that society should be less harsh lest something bad befall the individual responsible for the horror is nuts. From a personal perspective, whatever may be the fate for Williams and the others involved in the senseless slaying, I couldn't care less as long as they are never in the position to hurt someone again.

Nina Courtepatte was tortured in a manner that was inhuman. She was raped, beaten, stabbed and worse, she knew she was dying and the killers knew it too. She likely pleaded with them to get it over with and kill her. And even then, the torturous, slow killing continued.

I cannot even begin to describe the revulsion I feel for the animals who could participate in anything so horrible. I cannot even begin to understand why anyone in a just society should give a damn about anything that might happen to them in prison.

Sentencing these animals to life in prison doesn't even begin to provide justice for Nina Courtepatte. Perhaps when they are in prison, something might befall them that would induce in them the fear, pain and terror that they inflicted upon an innocent 13 year old girl. And perhaps not. But, it should not matter a whit to neither the system, nor society, when it comes to sentencing.

Jailhouse "justice" should not be condoned, but neither should the potential for it be reflected in any sentence.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

'Crats craziness risks public safety

While I would never accuse the bureaucrats in Corrections Services Canada of being in touch with reality, I think some recent policy decisions are suggesting they no longer reside on this planet.

Last week the Surete de Quebec were trying to button-hole an escaped piece of excrement known as Kevin Smith who had escaped from Montée St-François Institution in the Montreal area on Oct. 9th, 2007. They had a photo of the fleeing fugitive, but it was so old they believed it no longer looked like him. CSC did not issue an updated photo of Smith ostensibly because it would have violated his privacy rights.

The reason the police photo was outdated was because the last time they dealt with him was in 1991 when he was arrested, charged and convicted of murder. Last week, the SQ thought they had Smith corralled in the Estrie area of the Eastern Townships. But alas, he slipped through their fingers. They didn't specifically say it was because they didn't have a recent photo of Smith, but reading between the lines in the news story from the Sherbrooke Record pretty much tells the tale.

Now I don't know about you, but when a guy is convicted of murder and gets shuffled off to prison for a couple of decades, I think if he leaves before he is entitled to, he ought not to have any right to privacy. I may be old fashioned, but if he hasn't got the right to freedom and liberty, then that pretty much says the rest of it is all forfeit as well. And, for the record, this includes all those darlings of the Liberal Party of Canada who have the right to vote while they are guests of Her Majesty in one of the Club Feds that masquerade as our prison system.

And lest you think that this may be a one-off in the Smith case, it isn't. It is the policy of the dull-witted bureaucrats who run CSC.

Gary Gormley, another convicted murderer, escaped from a New Brunswick prison in September and CSC deliberately refused a request for a photo of that particular waste of oxygen. According to a story in the Montreal Gazette, "Under privacy rules, a photo of a convict can't be released unless he gives permission and signs a release form, said Corrections Canada, even if he breaks out of jail."

What utter horse hockey!

The RCMP, also a federal agency who toil under the same legislation as CSC, had no problem issuing a photo of Gormley when the media asked. So, what gives with CSC?

We already know that the backbone-challenged posers who run CSC don't think that criminals should be in prison. Now they seem to believe they have rights that effectively hamper the police efforts to return the rare murderers who actually do go to jail when they escape from the tender mercies of CSC.

It is nothing less than outrageous. The Prime Minister should immediately fire the Director General of the CSC and instruct the minister responsible to give those bureaucrats marching orders that more clearly reflect reality and I might add, the view of a majority of the Canadian public.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Politics of policing bar the right way

For a number of reasons, the debate has been raging in the Vancouver area about the potential amalgamation of the various police services into a regional police service.

The new Chief Constable of West Vancouver Police Department, Kash Heed, weighed in with his comments that it was high time for a regional police force. In the aftermath, I spoke a number of times on various radio talkshows essentially explaining that the talk of this has been happening since at least the 70's when I was a baby Mountie transferred into the Lower Mainland.

I received an email from a friend who is from BC, but is now a cop in California. The problem is the politics of policing. A nebulous term perhaps. But it is a prevalent issue. Here are his thoughts pasted in:

Hi Leo,

I thought I would add my observations to the current media storm of police dept. amalgamation in metro Vancouver. I think it will never come about for the following reasons:

1. Unlike in Toronto, Montreal, and Ottawa it is not the simple task of amalgamating a bunch of smaller agencies with one larger agency. That's why it went so smoothly in those places.

2. Vancouver has three police masters to appease: V.P.D. , the R.C.M.P., and, the smaller municipal depts. as a group. Both V.P.D. and the R.C.M.P. have the attitude their way is the only way and would never surrender to the other. The sdmaller "munies" at least work operationally as part of both systems, and are best prepared to transition (e.g. computer systems, tactics, training, etc.)

3. There are about 5,000 cops at all levels in metro Vancouver. Even if they convince a lot of the Mounties to become part of a regional force, there would still be a lot who would refuse to leave the Mounties. How can you replace so many cops, especially nowadays when it's so hard to find good quality candidates?

4. Where would the Mounties send all their redundant officers from the Lower Mainland? A huge amount of the force is employed in the Lower Mainland and it would force the Mounties to shrink. I know the force is undermanned but they would end up with a huge surplus they could not fund federally (without provincial and municipal contracts).

5. How do you harmonize the R.C.M.P. pension plan with the provincial police one? I did a study of this issue when I was in college in the late 1980's. I found it has been talked about since the 1930's!! I think the best that metro Vancouver will ever see is a few police resources and units(like the current regional homicide unit) being regionalized. But I would make a hefty bet that their will NEVER be one Metro Vancouver Police Dept. The Lower Mainland's situation has too many logisitical obstacles (let alone the politics) to prevent it.

My friend summarizes things well in that the politics of policing will prevent the logical and ultimately "right" thing from occurring.

The reality is that the carpet cops will always move to protect their fiefdom and not do what is right for the public. I'm a little surprised that Chief Heed failed to address that in his article. But, the politics prevalent in the policing world are a significant barrier to doing what is right for the law abiding , tax-paying public.

To understand an aspect of this, let's look at the final email sent out by the President of the Calgary Police Association to its membership in the waning days of his tenure. Al Koenig has served for three terms and cannot seek another term. He sent the following communication to each and every member of the Calgary Police Service. It is instructive in the crass and crude way it describes and plays the politics of policing. Here it is in its entirety and unadulterated:

CPA President’s Final Message

As this will be my last message to the membership as president, I thought it appropriate to reflect briefly on the past 8 years and to project what hopefully should be occurring in the next few years.I took office on January 1st 2000, and was surprised to find a president’s office where there were few systems or policies in place, and very little accountability.

Member representation seemed to be based on a whim, and many didn’t see the CPA as an organization that protected or advocated their rights. Some CPS management of the day regarded us as a joke, and the media and most Calgarians didn’t even know we existed, or why. I also inherited a CPA bank account that was so barren that we had to cash in GIC’s to pay the property taxes on our lot. Today we have over 2 million dollars in the CPA bank accounts, and a city block/lot valued at over 25 million dollars and growing.I tried to implement true accountability, however faced one or two hostile board members and their friends who proceeded to block every attempt to bring the new practices into place, and used every tool they had at their disposal to try and discredit me, as well as any supportive directors on the board.

Through rumour mongering and spreading false allegations, they tricked the membership into authorizing a forensic audit costing over $50,000.00 to “expose the corruption”. CPA computers were seized and we went into lockdown, of course this was conveniently orchestrated right around election time. The forensic accountants released their report a few months later finding “no illegal or criminal activity” and suggested the very controls be put into place that had been previously blocked by those same conspirators.

We also lived through the toughest negotiations we ever faced as an association, and as a result the Work Awareness Campaign (WAC) was born. During WAC, CPA members wore Back the Blue ball caps & turtlenecks, they grew facial hair, and those that couldn’t wore blue jeans with their uniforms or suit jackets, all showing their protest against lagging contract talks and city bargaining tactics. We marched on City Hall with the firefighter’s union and staged a sit-in during a City Council meeting. WAC also revealed who was willing to stand together…and who wasn’t. I have been told by more than one ex-CPS Executive member that prior to the “Pembrooke Peace Accord”, the CPA broke the spirit of the former chief, something he apparently never forgot or forgave.

In retrospect, it is interesting to note as well that preceding WAC, unless we accepted 0% + 0% we always received our contract settlements as the result of binding arbitration. Since WAC, we have been able to bring contracts before the membership for your vote, and you have ratified them.When I took office, we ranked 66th out of 78 police associations nationally in relation to wages. We have been successful in establishing “Top 10” status and having that recognized by the City of Calgary. At present, our 1st Class Constables are slightly below the “Top 10” by approximately $700.00 annually, but our Senior 1 & 2 Constables, Sergeants, Detectives and Staff Sergeants are in the top 3 of Canada.

In 2008, our senior Staff Sergeants will break the $100k per annum barrier, again not bad when you remember that they were paid $74k in 2000.The CPA is now known publicly as a strong supporter of local and national charities, and has donated well over $200,000.00 to those in need. This year, under the guidance and direction of Cal Wiltshire, and through a partnership with Walmart, the CPA is hosting the first annual Kid’s Christmas party in concert with the Boy’s & Girl’s Club of Calgary. This party will distribute holiday presents not only to CPA members’ children, but to children in need as identified by the Boy’s & Girl’s Club.The Missing Children’s Society, the Weekend to End Breast Cancer, Society for the Treatment of Autism, Prostate Cancer Ride for Dad, Calgary Military Family Resource Center, Camp Carmangay and the Fallen Four Society are but a few of the other groups the CPA has assisted.

One thing that continues to be developed is establishing our own Health & Welfare plan. While we were initially a part of CEEBS, which later became MEBAC, our benefits remain short of where I believe they should be based on our group size and usage. I’m happy to state that the ground work has been laid and contacts established to explore a viable cost neutral alternative to MEBAC.

Again, this is being stewarded by Cal Wiltshire, who currently sits on the MEBAC board, and he should have good news to report to the membership in the not to distant future.With the arrival of Chief Hanson, it is quite apparent that the CPA is entering into new and exciting times, coupled with a shared vision of forward progress.

Unfortunately, the vast majority of the CPA’s efforts in the past appeared to be purposely stalled by the previous chief. Chief Hanson has been very receptive to new ideas, and doesn’t reject initiatives merely because they didn’t come from him.

It is now time for you to decide who can best continue to lead the CPA for the next 3 years. I hope you have all read the candidates platforms and can differentiate poseurs from bona fide candidates. Disrespecting the current elected board of directors and their collective efforts or promising changes slightly short of giving everyone a pony on their birthday are not the basis on which to credibly campaign for office.

I believe there are two exceptional candidates who currently serve on the board of directors that are seeking the position of President. Both have the requisite, unique skills and abilities required to do the job, but what they will also need is a strong board of directors to support them in what has become an increasingly difficult task in an ever changing policing environment.

Another past director has also put his name forward, and stood strong as a member advocate during difficult times. It is easy to lead when there are no problems, and the candidates who previously stepped forward to serve you during tumultuous times should be rewarded with very serious consideration for the various positions.

Conversely I am also duty bound to inform the membership that the fourth presidential candidate was previously sanctioned by the board of directors and even had his honorarium withheld due to his refusal to do the job he was elected for. This individual failed to even attend at the CPA offices for several months, except to pick up his honoraria cheque.

This same individual sat on the SFPP board for several years, (unfortunately a provincially appointed position), and refused to step down despite several requests from the CPA board. This refusal was problematic due to the fact that at the time he was no longer on the CPA board, and refused to address CPA member issues. He also previously sat on the MEBAC board, and refused to carry out CPA directives which resulted in his removal.

The current CPA administration is finally able to address the SFPP and MEBAC issues ignored by this candidate…and ironically he now seeks to return as your president. He was also removed from the WAC committee, perhaps a little too late however.

I can only wonder if past behavior indicates future behavior.It has been an honour and a privilege to serve on your board of directors for the past 15 years, and serve the last 8 years as your president. I have made many lifelong friends and collected a few critics and enemies. To my friends, you have my utmost respect and thanks.

To my critics, grow a pair and run yourself. To my enemies, you can kiss my ass. I leave with my sanity and waistline essentially intact and have no regrets. The CPA is a strong vibrant association with many talented people willing to step up and do the right thing. Please support these individuals because they, and those who preceded them, are what make this association great.

Good luck, best wishes & stay safe.

Al Koenig

While the message emanates from Calgary, the issues are no different in Vancouver. Koenig's message simply offers us an interesting glimpse into what I am referring.

The politics of policing and the petty empire-building that is so prevalent will, at the end of the day, prevent doing what really needs to be done in Vancouver. The discussion that has been going on for decades is going to continue for a long time to come. No matter how many bodies fall on the streets .

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

'Might' isn't right

For those of you who I have spoken to or who have read my piece on the taser incident at YVR (The right questions not being asked) try this piece by Les MacPherson of the Star Phoenix.

The media is driving a feeding frenzy on the RCMP who were simply responding to a call to deal with a violent man. They responded according to their training and the stated policy of the Force. Don't like the policy? Fine. Make that the story. Think the Mounties were trying to cover up? Terrific. Have a go at their media relations strategy. But don't go after the guys who were trying their best to do their job.

In response to the frenzy, the Government of BC has ordered a public inquiry to accomplish God knows what. Well, that knee-jerk just cost the taxpayer at least $5million. And for what?

The Canada Border Services Agency (Canada Customs) who had care and control of Robert Dziekanski for over ten hours in their holding area and were the last and only agency to speak with him before the RCMP were called to deal with the by-then violent man, are a federal agency under the control, so to speak, of the Public Safety Minister, Stockwell Day. The RCMP at YVR are in federal positions and not, as I understand it, covered by the provincial contract with the federal police agency. YVR itself is under the regulation of the federal Minister of Transport. I hate to be pedantic, but what can a provincial public inquiry hope to achieve into three departments under federal control?

Here’s a clue . . .absolutely nothing unless those agencies decide to cooperate fully with an ultra vires inquiry. That might occur. And the CBSA and YVR might actually say something to address the many serious questions that led to the Mounties being called by them to deal with a violent man they created.

They might. And my old maternal Aunt might grow testicles and become my Uncle.

Leo Knight
http://www.blogger.com/leo@primetimecrime.com


A Look at the Other Side of the Taser Incident:
Man's lack of co-operation necessitated force

Les MacPherson, The StarPhoenix, Saturday, November 17, 2007

We have all by now seen the disturbing video of the hapless Polish immigrant screaming, writhing and dying after RCMP officers used a Taser on him at the Vancouver airport. Now almost everyone in the country is piling on police for using excessive force.

Excuse me for not joining in. What people seem not to realize is that there is no way to subdue a violent, irrational and potentially dangerous suspect that isn't disturbing. What, exactly, would these armchair critics have had the police do? Talk to the guy? They tried. Police when they approached the man were as non-threatening as they could be. It didn't work.

The suspect, after storming around the airport, smashing up furniture and alarming everyone around him, was now ignoring police instructions. Instead of co-operating, as any reasonable person would have and should have done, he threw up his hands, turned around and walked away.

Were police supposed to let him go? Were they to let him storm around some more until he felt like obeying them? I hope not. For all anyone knew, the suspect was armed and potentially dangerous. Had he suddenly produced a weapon and killed an innocent bystander, say, the same people who today are condemning the officers for using excessive force would instead be condemning them for not using enough force. "Why didn't they use their Tasers?" people would be asking.

All the man had to do was co-operate and no one would have been hurt. Instead, he resisted by walking away. If violent and potentially dangerous suspects can avoid arrest simply by walking away, we might as well not even have police.

Of course, Robert Dziekanski did not deserve to die. But someone who for no good reason is violent and destructive and who then ignores the police should expect to be roughly handled. That the rough handling in this case ended in tragedy is not the fault of police. They were using a tool that we have given them; a tool intended to reduce the risk of injury to both themselves and suspects.

No one could have foreseen that the suspect would not survive. Independent scientific studies in Canada, Britain and the U.S. have repeatedly found that Tasers are more likely to save lives and reduce injuries to both suspects and police. That's why journalists and police officers routinely submit to being zapped for demonstration purposes. As an alternative to zapping Dziekanski, police could have tried to physically subdue him, but not without risk of serious injury to themselves and their suspect.

For all they knew at the time, he could have been high on illegal drugs, some of which are known to give a resistant suspect the strength of several men. For all they knew at the time, he could have had AIDS or hepatitis and a pocket full of needles. The $60,000 a year we pay these people isn't nearly enough to expect them to get into a bloody brawl if they can possibly avoid it. Pepper spray is another alternative, but that, too, has been implicated in dozens of deaths.

As for police batons, they have been found to be more dangerous still, more so, even, than Tasers. Of course, none of these are necessary for suspects who don't resist arrest. Why Dziekanski behaved as he did, we may never know. We've all found ourselves waiting at one time or another for someone who doesn't show up, as he apparently was. Most of us handle it without throwing around the furniture.

There was in this case the additional complication of a language barrier, but rational people overcome language barriers all the time, especially so in international airports. That 60 million others, many of them foreign, have passed through the Vancouver airport without incident would suggest that the problem was with Dziekanski.

By the time police were called to the scene, he had long since cleared immigration and was free to go. He could have sought out an interpreter. He could have caught a cab, found a hotel room and sorted it all out the next day. Instead, he went more or less berserk and then resisted arrest. Police are not allowed the luxury of sorting it out later.

Their duty was to subdue and arrest him, one way or another, and promptly. For all they knew, he was a smuggler whose erratic behaviour was caused by a broken condom of cocaine in his stomach. Had that been the case, their prompt action might just as easily have saved his life. When police are killed in the line of duty, we fret mightily over officer safety, for without officer safety, there can be no public safety. Then, when police use the tools we give them to make their dangerous job as safe as it can be, we condemn them. So which is it?

lmacpherson@sp.canwest.com

Better late than never

The ink was barely dry on a column I published last night wondering how the Liberal Party of Canada would handle the revelations about West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast MP Blair Wilson when, scant hours later, the Libs announced on their web site that he was done. And no, I am not claiming there is any connection. I'm just surprised at the speed of it.

During the Jean Chretien era, allegations such as this would have been met with denials, obfuscation and more denials until the country lost interest or got pummelled into submission. Not this time it seems.

Although, I am a little surprised that the Liberal Party is claiming that this is the first they have heard of allegations of impropriety about Wilson. I first wrote about him in January of 2005 and Terry O'Neill wrote on the subject in the Western Standard in the spring of 2006. So it is a little disingenous to claim this is new. But, better late than never I suppose.

Wilson should never have been the MP for West Vancouver-Sunshine Coast. There was more than enough information about him as a business failure and alleged con man going back into the '90s. But, for the Libs it seems none of it matters until it appears as a front page story in the mainstream media.

While I applaud the action taken by Stephane Dion, it is still long overdue.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Raging debate or raging lunatics?

A couple of weeks back a provincial court judge on Vancouver Island earned himself a rebuke from a charter member of the legal industry sitting on the bench of the BC Court of Appeal when he wrote in a written response to a defense submission requesting yet another slap on the wrist for his client by way of a Conditional Sentence Order or CSO.

The judge, stricken with an unconscionable fit of common sense, said: "CSOs, as I have said repeatedly, have become little more than glorified probation orders . . . it is hard to imagine them having any effect on an offender except as a matter of inconvenience. "It is hard to imagine, as well, that these sentences have any credibility with the public."

The Court of Appeal judicial tribunal evidently thought that bit of overt logic was beyond the purview of a lowly PCJ and said the comments were "not appropriate" and could "potentially undermine public confidence in the judicial process."

What, in sweet Fanny Adams, are they drinking up there in the Court of Appeal Chambers? Do they actually believe that the public has any confidence whatsoever in the judicial process? Here’s some flash traffic for the silk-gowned elitists: The public has absolutely no confidence in the judicial process. None. Zip. Zero. Nada. The only people who have confidence in the system are the habitual criminals, gangsters and drug dealers who know the system will visit few, if any, consequences upon them time after time after time after time.

In the past couple of weeks though, there are a few signs that some common sense is starting to eke into the thinking of the politicians. Prime Minister Stephen Harper announced in the Throne Speech last week that he is fed up with the Liberals blockading their anti-crime initiatives that have resonated with voters across the country. This isn’t a right and left issue, it is a right and wrong issue. And any effort to stymie the changes to the Criminal Code legislation suggested by the Harper government is wrong.

CSO’s, first foisted upon an unwitting nation by Jean Chretien’s sad, tired and corrupt government, have absolutely got to go. They may, and I say may with an abundance of caution, be appropriate in some cases where the accused is in front of the courts for the first time. That’s it. CSO’s . . .house arrest . . .grounding, however you wish to describe the sham perpetrated upon law-abiding Canadians, has to be severely curtailed.

But there are those hand-wringers who really think that a leopard can change its spots and that the rest of us deserve to be victimized again and again. Consider this letter in the October 21st issue of The Province.

In the first place, I wish she were a voice in the wilderness, but she seems to reflect decades of thinking by the Liberal Party of Canada and far too many thousands of under-achievers in the federal bureaucracy. Notice the hint of “RACIST” in the letter? What absolute nonsense! The only part of it that made any sense was when she said the criminal justice system has been proven to be ineffective is stopping crime. She might have added the liberal created criminal justice system and she would have been closer to the truth.

I applaud the Prime Minister and his attempt to take control of our justice system and our streets as a result. But, his is not only to talk the talk. He must be seen to walk the walk. We shall see if he stays the course amid the shifting political winds. As for the letter writer, I wonder if she and the other members of the lunatic fringe would consider wearing an orange cone on their heads as they venture out in public. It would be much easier to shun them.

Leo Knight
leo@primetimecrime.com

Damned if they do . . .

I see that students at UBC are "outraged" by a couple of members of the RCMP who showed their human side instead of acting like jack-booted brown shirts. I mean really, have these self-aggrandizing twits nothing better to do?

And why in the world hasn't someone in the RCMP told the student newspaper and any other media outlet thinking this is a real news story to take a hike?

It seems the Mounties pulled up to a group of students who were partying at a bus stop back in July. A number of the youths, if not all, had open liquor, an offence under the Liquor Control and Licensing Act, a provincial statute. The police officers could have written summons' for each of the students, arrested anyone being uncooperative and charged them with obstruction or simply carted a bunch of them off for being drunk in public. But they didn't.

No, they did their job by getting them all to empty out their glasses and bottles and joked around with the students. You know, like real human beings.

We've seen it all before. If the police wade into a situation like that and try and "hard ass" the youths, a fight will evolve, people will go to jail and the police will inevitably be criticized by these self-same holier-than-thou jerks for being heavy-handed. This time they did what they had to do and did it without laying a single charge or putting anyone in jail. And they are still being criticized. Cops expect that theirs is a thankless job, but this is ridiculous. The RCMP should not spend one minute contemplating anything other than saying to anyone who asks that the members did nothing wrong.

Trust me in this, this is not a news story. It is nothing more that huffery and puffery by some self aggrandizing pinheads.

'Nuff said.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Pomp and circumstance when a quiet farewell would do

"Friends applaud, the Comedy is over". - Ludwig von Beethoven

Tomorrow is the transition day of the administration of the Office of the Chief Constable of the Calgary Police Service. And to judge by the statements made in an interview with the Calgary Sun's Rick Bell, the new chief is going to bring a tough new attitude to policing that city.

But, lest you think that the outgoing Chief Jack Beaton will be going quietly, uh, well, not so much.

Apparently Beaton has commissioned a Change of Command parade with all the pomp and circumstance possible. Including, I am told, the Ceremonial Unit, which does a foot drill demonstration complete with formal uniforms and all the trimming including white gloves. And, are the fine men and women who voluntarily serve in the Ceremonial Unit happy to show up for Jack's parade? Uh, no. I am told that NCO commanding the unit had to send out an email ordering all members to attend. I am also told the email said, "All members of the CU (trumpeters included) will be required for this event."

Hmmm, what about those folks who are scheduled to be patrolling the streets protecting the citizens of Calgary? No problem. "If you have any issue getting the time off, let me know . . .the Inspector will deal with them . . .otherwise all are expected to attend," concluded the email as described to me.

So, the officers who are being paid to work will be diverted from their regular tasks and those who are on time off will likely be paid overtime to pose and parade around.

Now, I don't what all of this will cost, and in the great scheme of things, only a small fraction of the overall police budget, but why the need to spend it at all?

A day earlier, the full Ceremonial Unit was happy to appear, voluntarily, at the National Memorial Day in recognition of the police officers killed in the line of duty in Canada. But parade for Jack Beaton who cannot even garner the support of one third of the membership of the serving police officers in Calgary? Not unless ordered to.

Speaks volumes, doesn't it?

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

*********************

While I encourage full, frank and lively discussion on anything I publish, for the second time since this blog was started, I had to cloak a whole thread on a post because of some ill-informed, anonymous individual. I might have even considered leaving the thread up if the person had signed the comment.

Folks, please feel free to comment and give me your opinion. But please, stay within the bounds of civility and the law. If you don't I will take down the whole thread and by doing that some lively discussion and well-thought out opinions will unfortunately not be seen.

I cannot and will not condone libel, slander and childish name-calling.

Thank you for your cooperation.

Leo Knight

Jack's last gasp

As if to underline how inneffectual he was as a Chief Constable in Calgary, Jack Beaton has served Michael Bates, the lawyer for Cst. Taufiq Shah, with notice that he will file an application with the Court of Queen's Bench to overturn the Police Act hearing and ruling made by Edmonton Police Supt. Logar. (see Chief wrong . . .again )

How many times does Beaton have to get beaten over the head with something before he understands it? He was wrong to do what he did. He overtly tried an end run around the Police Act and he got caught. And Logar said so in his judgement.

Since the dismal failure to prosecute Shah, who was primarily the victim of racism, (See What's up Jack? ) Beaton has had his long goodbye cut short by the Police Commission . . .finally. His replacement, Rick Hanson is due to be sworn in October 1, 2007, less than two weeks after Beaton served notice on Bates.

Unbelieveable. As against that, I suppose it's probably a fitting way for Beaton to go, by making yet another ham-fisted attempt to get revenge on Shah for daring to be critical of Beaton's administration with the web site Standfirm.biz and its successor Code200.com.

Let it go Jack. For just once in your troubled tenure, couldn't you show a little class and just go quietly?

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Privacy rights for escaped con latest corrections joke

Just when you think the insanity in Corrections Canada cannot get any worse, they prove it can. (See Escaped prisoner enjoys privacy rights )

As I contemplated that particular bit on nonsense, I received the following from retired Vancouver Police Inspector, Bob Cooper. It needs to see the light of day.

Leo Knight

leo@primetimecrime.com

Although there is never a lack of horror stories involving Corrections Canada, this one's a beauty. A convicted killer escapes from prison and Corrections Canada is more concerned with his privacy rights than they are about the safety and security of the law-abiding populace. Citing provisions of the Privacy Act they refuse to release his photograph to the news media saying that the inmate would first have to sign a release! If this is even true, which wouldn't surprise me, then the Act is in serious and immediate need of amendment. I rather suspect this is a case of an overzealous bureaucrat taking the most narrow interpretation of the Act, otherwise why would they photograph convicts to begin with? Perhaps for a Before and After version in which the piercings and tattoos are 'photoshopped' out and replaced with gowns and mortarboards demonstrating the success of present day 'enlightened' Corrections practices.


Either way this incident speaks volumes about the prevailing attitudes at Corrections Canada brought about by decades of institutionalized liberal philosophy which has held sway since Trudeau was elected. This mindset was articulated by then Solicitor-General Jean-Pierre Goyer who announced in 1971 that the government had decided to stress rehabilitation of offenders rather than the protection of society. The operative phrase in Goyer's statement was 'rather' than' as opposed to 'as well as' or something similar that would have allowed for the coexistence of both goals. The federal justice bureaucracy took Goyer at his word and, as anyone who's worked in the system will tell you, things have gone straight downhill ever since.


The liberal rot has set so deep in the system that even the election of the odd Conservative government over the years has done nothing to put matters right. In some cases you wouldn't know the difference. From pathetically weak criminal law to feeble (not to mention race-based) sentencing to the 'release as quickly as possible' policies of the National Parole Board one could be forgiven for wondering if the protection of society is even a consideration anymore. I would point out here that there are a lot of good and very dedicated people working in all of these areas who simply have no choice but to follow these delusional policies set by the mandarins at the top.


A few years ago, in response to increased violence inside federal prisons, guards asked to be issued with protective 'stab-resistant' vests and handcuffs to be worn on a daily basis. Now prior to this the only protective clothing available to guards would be donned by the Emergency Response Team in the event of a riot and handcuffs were locked in guard stations. As anyone who has ever fought with a prisoner will tell you the sooner you get handcuffs on him the safer it is for everyone. The average person would see this as a reasonable request but not Corrections Canada. They turned the request down saying that such authoritarian symbols would send the wrong message to the inmates. When they care more about the sensitivities of convicted criminals that they do about the safety of their own staff how much do you think they care about you and I?


Around the same time, myself and another detective had to go to Kent Institution to interview a prisoner. Note, that's Kent Institution. Not prison, not penitentiary, but institution. Rather like we were off to commencement exercises at Yale or Princeton. Now for those unfamiliar with the prison, sorry, institutional system, Kent is one of Canada's maximum security institutions built to handle the country's most dangerous convicts. It's the sort of place where you'd hope the authorities would have the upper hand but no. A guard was taking us to see the prisoner when we came to a locked gate.


As we stood waiting for the gate to open a scene unfolded on the other side which showed us exactly who runs the place. Three uniformed guards were standing in a semi-circle around an inmate who looked like he'd done more than his share of time. The inmate, in turn, was addressing a management type who was dressed in civilian clothes so as not to send the wrong message. In a loud, profanity-laced tirade, the inmate told the manager he wasn't going to rake the leaves and also told him where he could shove the rake. The manager's response will be forever etched in my memory. In a low, soothing voice he said "Well now Roger, you have to understand that the rules apply to you as well as to everyone else". This 'enlightened' approach appeared to fall wide of its mark as Roger replied that the manager could shove his rules the same place he put the rake and further suggested he perform a sexual act upon himself.


This went on for 5 minutes while we waited for the gate to open. Each time the guards would move to seize Roger the manager would wave them off and further try to engage this loser seemingly without a single thought of what Roger had done to get there in the first place. The guard who was escorting us was staring at the ground and shuffling his feet in embarrassment. He finally asked how long this would go on in the City Jail to which my partner replied "It's already over. They're already on the intercom calling for the nurse".


So we soldiered on and interviewed the prisoner, a pleasant, beefy kid in his late 20s. During the interview he mentioned that this was his first federal sentence (Note: Federal sentences are those of two years or more, prisoners serving anything less do so in Provincial jails). This prompted me to ask him what he found different from the provincial jails he'd been in before. A look of genuine indignation came across his face and he looked at me and said, "There's guys in here who don't think they've done anything wrong and no one here ever tells them otherwise". Out of the mouths of prisoners!


When I came on the job the whipping of prisoners for certain offences such as rape was provided for in the Criminal Code. I'm not calling for the return of the whip (On the other hand.....). Just for a day when the Corrections people had their heads screwed on halfway right, knew who they were protecting, and the inmates knew who was boss. As I've said in the past, lots of work to do. Mr. Harper, Mr. Day, you on the air?

Bob Cooper
Richmond, BC