Close X
Thursday, November 14, 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

Former Olympic CEO Furlong Makes First Major Speech After Abuse Allegations Case

VANCOUVER — John Furlong felt accused of letting Canada down when a newspaper published allegations that he abused First Nations children, the former Vancouver Olympics boss said in his first major speech in three years.

Former Olympic CEO Furlong Makes First Major Speech After Abuse Allegations Case

Federal Energy Minister Meets With Oil Industry Officials In Calgary

Federal Energy Minister Meets With Oil Industry Officials In Calgary
CALGARY — Canada's new natural resources minister met with his Alberta counterpart and oil industry executives in Calgary on Wednesday but gave them little to cheer about.

Federal Energy Minister Meets With Oil Industry Officials In Calgary

Dennis Oland To Testify In His Own Defence At Murder Trial

Dennis Oland To Testify In His Own Defence At Murder Trial
"Let me make one thing perfectly clear: to be sure it is our position that the Crown has not presented a case that satisfies the legal burden on this charge," Miller said.

Dennis Oland To Testify In His Own Defence At Murder Trial

Vancouver Police Say Deadly One-punch Incidents Fuelled By Booze And Bravado

Vancouver Police Say Deadly One-punch Incidents Fuelled By Booze And Bravado
Vancouver police say alcohol and bravado appear to be fuelling a disturbing — and sometimes deadly — trend of one-punch attacks.

Vancouver Police Say Deadly One-punch Incidents Fuelled By Booze And Bravado

Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer

Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer
An amateur scuba diver has recovered a bottle from the bottom of Halifax harbour that could contain beer that is more than a century old.

Century-Old Bottle Found In Halifax Harbour May Contain Drinkable Beer

Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF

Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF
This year’s theme: Bollywood & Beyond, celebrates stories that engage, educate, and inspire audiences by promoting free expression, cross-cultural interactions, and understanding. 

Films You Don’t Want to Miss at VISAFF