Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 01 Mar, 2022 01:30 PM
VANCOUVER - A special prosecutor says British Columbia's former clerk of the legislative assembly used public funds to enrich himself in "glaring and egregious" ways.
Brock Martland made the allegation as he began closing arguments in the Crown's case against Craig James, who has pleaded not guilty to two counts of fraud over $5,000 and three counts of breach of trust.
James's defence is expected to present its case Wednesday.
Martland says that as the most senior officer of the legislature, James held a position akin to the CEO and was responsible for financial stewardship of the institution.
He accused James of acting outside of his duties by picking up a wood splitter and trailer for the legislature and storing them at home for a year, exploiting a weakness in the system to award himself a $258,000 retirement benefit and charging souvenirs to the public purse.
Martland says public trust in government officials is a critical part of a functioning democracy, and he alleged that James violated that trust.
"This case is about trust, specifically the public trust that we place in government officials," Martland told the court on Tuesday.
"Our position is that the public trust was violated repeatedly and extensively by Craig James."
The bill will include the creation of a peace bond to prevent people from continuing to make racist comments or from carrying out hateful threats. The court order would be designed to prevent a hate crime occurring and would include penalties if it is breached, including up to four years imprisonment.
Demonstrators began parking their trucks and other vehicles last Saturday near the crossing at Coutts, Alta., in solidarity with similar events in Ottawa and other locations to protest COVID-19 vaccine mandates and broader public health measures.
The soda was sold nationally in 200 millilitre containers with a best before date of Sep. 24, 2023. The Canadian Food Inspection Agency says the recall was triggered by a consumer complaint.
The decrease marked the largest drop since January 2021, when the economy shed 207,800 jobs, Statistics Canada said Friday. The job losses also pushed the unemployment rate to 6.5 per cent in January compared with 6.0 per cent in December
Vikram Bajwa wants the court to force the party to provide details of its audit of thousands of new memberships signed up during the campaign. His petition also asks that the party be ordered to reveal its conclusions on whether any co-ordinated voter fraud took place in the leadership race.
A statement from Delta Police says officers responded to a call of shots fired just after 2 a.m. at a home on the northeast side of the city. The unnamed male victim died at the scene.
