Close X
Thursday, November 7, 2024
ADVT 
National

Feds Seek 3-Month Delay To Reassess Court Challenge Of RCMP Gun Data Destruction

Darpan News Desk The Canadian Press, 04 Dec, 2015 12:25 PM
  • Feds Seek 3-Month Delay To Reassess Court Challenge Of RCMP Gun Data Destruction
OTTAWA — The constitutional challenge to a Conservative law that retroactively cleared the RCMP for destroying gun registry data has been put on hold while the new Liberal government reassesses its options.
 
The attorney general of Canada requested a three-month delay in the case, according to the office of federal information commissioner Suzanne Legault, in order to "consider its position in these proceedings."
 
Legault and the individual involved in the case, Bill Clennett, agreed to the postponement.
 
At issue is a highly controversial move by the former Conservative government last spring to retroactively rewrite a 2012 law after Legault recommended charges be laid against the Mounties for withholding and destroying gun registry data.
 
The Harper government reacted to Legault's special report to Parliament by creating a backdated loophole that removed any criminal liability for the RCMP actions. Moreover, it used its May omnibus budget bill to effectively turn back the clock to October 2011, altering the provisions of the 2012 Ending the Long-gun Registry Act and then having that old bill come into force months before it was even passed by Parliament.
 
The information commissioner called the Conservative move a "perilous precedent" that could be used by future governments to retroactively rewrite laws on everything from spending scandals to electoral fraud.
 
The Ontario Provincial Police, which had begun an investigation of the RCMP's actions following a referral from the public prosecutors office, dropped the case as a result of the Conservative legal rewrite.
 
Access-to-information experts said the unprecedented government move cleared the path for the destruction of documents and legislated cover-ups.
 
Last month, Canada's provincial information commissioners sought intervener status in the constitutional challenge at the Ontario Superior Court of Justice — a measure of the widespread unease wit

MORE National ARTICLES

Over To You, CP Rail: Norfolk Southern Rejects Proposed US$28 Billion Merger

Over To You, CP Rail: Norfolk Southern Rejects Proposed US$28 Billion Merger
The straight-talking CEO of Canadian Pacific Railway saw his takeover bid for one of the biggest rail companies in the U.S. rejected Friday over concerns it would not secure regulatory approval.

Over To You, CP Rail: Norfolk Southern Rejects Proposed US$28 Billion Merger

Four Days Of Paris Climate Talks Trim Draft Agreement Text By Four Pages

Four Days Of Paris Climate Talks Trim Draft Agreement Text By Four Pages
The United Nations sponsored conference got a shot of adrenaline Monday when 150 world leaders, including Prime Minister Justin Trudeau, showed up for the opening day at the invitation of host French President Francois Hollande.

Four Days Of Paris Climate Talks Trim Draft Agreement Text By Four Pages

Teen Shot Outside Surrey Elementary School Was Targeted, No One's Co-Operating: Police

Teen Shot Outside Surrey Elementary School Was Targeted, No One's Co-Operating: Police
Mounties have said two Caucasian males between the ages of 17 and 22 are believed to have been involved in the shooting Tuesday night.

Teen Shot Outside Surrey Elementary School Was Targeted, No One's Co-Operating: Police

Four Abbotsford Teens Arrested After Lockdowns At Several Schools

Four Abbotsford Teens Arrested After Lockdowns At Several Schools
It began just after 12 p.m. Thursday when four suspects, one possibly carrying a weapon, were involved in a dispute with a homeowner in the northeast corner of the Fraser Valley city.

Four Abbotsford Teens Arrested After Lockdowns At Several Schools

Canadian Sikhs Lauded For Helping Syrian Refugees

Canadian Sikhs Lauded For Helping Syrian Refugees
Canada's Immigration and Refugees Minister John McCallum has lauded the efforts of Sikhs to help thousands fleeing Syria, a media report said.

Canadian Sikhs Lauded For Helping Syrian Refugees

Charges Mount Against Suspect In Alleged Crimes In B.C. And Alberta

Charges Mount Against Suspect In Alleged Crimes In B.C. And Alberta
A 27-year-old man could face numerous charges in two provinces after a series of break-ins in northwestern Alberta and a dangerous attempt to escape from Mounties in northeastern B.C.

Charges Mount Against Suspect In Alleged Crimes In B.C. And Alberta

PrevNext