PC justice critic urging N.L. government to hire more prosecutors
CBC
An accused murderer was freed of charges in Newfoundland and Labrador last week, and the Opposition justice critic is calling for more support for the government's Crown prosecutors.
Kurt Churchill's second-degree murder charges in Newfoundland and Labrador were stayed in Supreme Court last week under court guidelines intended to ensure the Charter right of an accused to be tried in a reasonable time.
Helen Conway Ottenheimer says there's a concern for public safety and Crown attorneys in Newfoundland and Labrador can only do so much.
"If our Crown attorney's office is weakened because of inadequate staffing, every single person in our province, I would submit, is at risk," Conway Ottenheimer said. "If we have potentially dangerous offenders being released into our community, you know, that's even going to cause more risk."
With attorneys handling more than 200 cases at a time, she said, the province has to act immediately.
Justice Minister Bernard Davis wouldn't say much about the situation last week — only that the decision to toss out Churchill's case was now under examination by the Crown.
"Public prosecutions is looking into this," Davis told reporters at the time.
Churchill was accused of second-degree murder in the shooting death of James Cody in St. John's in 2020.
With a trial set for last fall, the case was delayed after prosecutors disclosed unredacted information to defence lawyers. That compromised the trial and forced Churchill to find new representation.
He did, but a new defence team couldn't prepare for a trial on short notice. That further delayed Churchill's trial beyond the 30-month limit for Supreme Court cases to be heard by a judge.
Churchill is currently in custody in Ontario on unrelated charges.
In August, the head of the association that represents Newfoundland and Labrador prosecutors called on the province to invest in its Crown attorneys.
"Quite simply, the number of Crown attorneys has not been adequately adjusted to keep up with the increase in crime," said Shawn Patten, president of the Newfoundland and Labrador Crown Attorneys Association.
When Patten spoke to CBC News last month, he said the province wasn't at the stage where cases are being tossed because Crown attorneys aren't able to bring them to court.
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