St. Albert, 28th April, 2017– MP Michael Cooper, the Conservative Deputy Justice critic slammed the Liberal Justice Minister today for putting ideology ahead of public safety by failing to appoint judges in a timely matter.
In the wake of the groundbreaking Supreme Court of Canada decision in Jordan, criminal cases must be completed within a 30-month deadline or risk being thrown-out. In the nine months following this decision the Liberal Minister of Justice, the Honourable Jody Wilson-Raybould has failed to fill nearly 60 judicial vacancies across Canada. These court vacancies have led to an increase in judicial backlogs and allowed serious criminal cases, including murder, to be thrown-out due to delay.
Nine months later the Minister claims she is taking action by calling an emergency meeting with her provincial counterparts in Gatineau Quebec. For nine months the Minister has failed to take action and now suspected killers and other serious suspected criminals are free to endanger our communities.
The Minister has failed to take decisive action on this serious issue because she is preoccupied with appointing judges that reflect the ideological agenda of the Liberal Government. Now she is claiming that Mandatory Minimums for dangerous offenders needs to go to address the court delays. Canadians are not buying the Minister of Justice’s excuses and we expect better from our Government.
It is time for the Minister to fill judicial vacancies and work with her provincial counterparts to implement a plan to address court delays immediately. If the Minister is unable to put ideology aside and make public safety a priority, perhaps it is time for someone else to do the job.
For further information, media may contact:
Dane Lloyd, Parliamentary Assistant
Michael.Cooper@parl.gc.ca
Tel: 613-996-4723
