- Aug 6, 2012
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I'm a libertarian minded person for a reason. I believe in full justice for harsh crimes, especially sadistic and evil. I also believe in redemption of most humans. We are all products of our environment and we know justice isn't blind.
Ontario is already the most broke sub-borrowing jurisdiction on earth while our civil liberties and economy are in the tank. Now putting former cops in the role of Justice of the Peace is not only a problem optically, it is also a sign of the patronage system we have. A cop is going to arrest someone and then sit in their judgement? WTF is going on in my country?
ca.news.yahoo.com
Criminal defence lawyers are raising alarm bells after the Ford government appointed a slew of new justices of the peace, more than a third with former policing, military and correctional backgrounds — a move at least one lawyer is calling a "dark day for the appearance of justice in Ontario."
Last week, the province announced 41 new justices of the peace would be appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective July 8, following changes to the Justice of the Peace Act early in the pandemic. Fifteen of those appointees have past careers with the Canadian Armed Forces, various police services, border services or as parole officers.
It's not the first time a justice of the peace has had a prior background in such a field, but the scale of this new set of appointments is one critics say is part of a larger attempt by the Ford government to stack the bench and exert more control over the judicial system.
"This is a deeply disturbing development," criminal defence lawyer Michael Spratt told CBC News.
"The number of police, law enforcement, corrections individuals who are appointed raises some huge red flags, not only for the administration of justice but for the perception from the accused, from the public's point of view about how justice will be administered," said Spratt.
"The problem with appointing police officers is they are a partisan actor. To have someone who can be arresting individuals and advocating for their detention one day and then deciding that bail issue another day is deeply problematic."
Ontario is already the most broke sub-borrowing jurisdiction on earth while our civil liberties and economy are in the tank. Now putting former cops in the role of Justice of the Peace is not only a problem optically, it is also a sign of the patronage system we have. A cop is going to arrest someone and then sit in their judgement? WTF is going on in my country?
Criminal defence lawyers sound alarm over Ford government's new justice of the peace appointees
Criminal defence lawyers are raising alarm bells after the Ford government appointed a slew of new justices of the peace, more than a third with former policing, military and correctional backgrounds — a move at least one lawyer is calling a "dark day for the appearance of justice in Ontario."...
Criminal defence lawyers are raising alarm bells after the Ford government appointed a slew of new justices of the peace, more than a third with former policing, military and correctional backgrounds — a move at least one lawyer is calling a "dark day for the appearance of justice in Ontario."
Last week, the province announced 41 new justices of the peace would be appointed to the Ontario Court of Justice, effective July 8, following changes to the Justice of the Peace Act early in the pandemic. Fifteen of those appointees have past careers with the Canadian Armed Forces, various police services, border services or as parole officers.
It's not the first time a justice of the peace has had a prior background in such a field, but the scale of this new set of appointments is one critics say is part of a larger attempt by the Ford government to stack the bench and exert more control over the judicial system.
"This is a deeply disturbing development," criminal defence lawyer Michael Spratt told CBC News.
"The number of police, law enforcement, corrections individuals who are appointed raises some huge red flags, not only for the administration of justice but for the perception from the accused, from the public's point of view about how justice will be administered," said Spratt.
"The problem with appointing police officers is they are a partisan actor. To have someone who can be arresting individuals and advocating for their detention one day and then deciding that bail issue another day is deeply problematic."
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