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Crown attorneys call on Manitoba government to help address ‘dangerously heavy caseloads’
The Manitoba Association of Crown Attorneys (MACA) is calling on the provincial government to help reduce mounting workloads that it says are making it difficult for prosecutors to meet their professional responsibilities. grievance it filed in April 2023. It says the grievance it filed back in April 2023 regarding 'dangerously heavy caseloads' won't be heard by an arbitrator until October 2025.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2025-01-10
Preparing RCMP body-cam evidence for court will be monumental task, prosecutor says
The RCMP is phasing-in the use of body-worn cameras across the country and expects 90 per cent of frontline members to be wearing them within a year. Shara Munn, president of the New Brunswick Crown Prosecutors Association, said while the body-camera evidence will be great to have, it will also mean a huge influx of work for prosecutors.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2025-01-06
N.L. government invests in 18 new Crown attorneys amid severe staffing crunch
Newfoundland and Labrador Justice Minister Bernard Davis announced Wednesday afternoon that the provincial government is investing nearly $24 million to improve the province's justice system.... The investment comes after CBC News reported in numerous stories that Crown attorneys in the province were "suffocating" from overwhelming workloads and a critical staffing shortage.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2024-11-14
Newfoundland to add more Crown prosecutors
Newfoundland and Labrador has agreed to hire more Crown lawyers following cries of a shortage of prosecutors in the province. The “multi-year investment” will include the hiring of 18 new Crown lawyers, according to a news release.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2024-11-13
Critical shortage of Crown attorneys has ‘gone on way too long’ and is hurting public safety
The Canadian Association of Crown Counsel, an umbrella group for thousands of Crown attorneys and government lawyers across the country is calling for a big boost in the number of provincial prosecutors in Newfoundland and Labrador.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2024-11-13
Most criminal cases in Ontario now ending before charges are tested at trial
More than half of the criminal charges laid by police in Ontario never make it to trial, according to data from Statistics Canada. The numbers paint a troubling picture of the province’s justice system. More judges, staff, prosecutors and courtrooms needed, says Crown attorneys’ association.
[ ...More ]Publication date : 2024-11-12
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B.C. prosecutors’ association raises security concerns about Vancouver courthouse following assault
05-02-2024
The association that represents B.C.’s roughly 450 Crown prosecutors is raising safety concerns around an East Vancouver courthouse after a member was allegedly assaulted outside last week.
Police say 27-year-old Kenyon Lavallee randomly attacked two women near the provincial courthouse at 222 Main St. Friday morning.
The British Columbia Crown Counsel Association has since confirmed one of the victims is a prosecutor, and that she was sent to hospital after the assault.
"We’re reeling, this has really shaken us to the core to have one of our own attacked right here,” said BCCCA president Adam Dalrymple.
He says the prosecutor was being escorted by a security guard – which lawyers making their way to that courthouse often are – but the attack still wasn’t prevented.
Dalrymple says the incident has sparked broader concerns about that courthouse, noting that while lawyers are given security escorts, victims, witnesses and members of the public are not.
"This is Canada, British Columbia, Vancouver – the fact that we have to have escorts and shuttles for court staff into a provincial court (is unacceptable),” he said. “This court services the lion’s share of criminal matters from Burnaby and Vancouver.”
Dalrymple says they’re hoping to spark a discussion about finding a new location for the Vancouver provincial courthouse.
“This where people come to see their justice system, this is where people come to observe sentencings, this where young people come to learn about their justice system,” he said.
“That engagement is so critical to the proper functioning of the criminal justice system,” he added. “What makes it work is that people within the system feel safe, that courthouses are in safe locations.”
Premier David Eby says his government isn’t considering moving the courthouse, but that there will be discussions around safety.
"I'm certainly very concerned about this assault on a Crown prosecutor, and the safety of every person that uses that courthouse as well as more broadly in the neighbourhood,” he said.
“We will continue to do the work we’ve been doing to ensure the safety of all court participants.”
In a statement, B.C. Attorney General Niki Sharma said she will be meeting directly with the BCCA and the Trial Lawyers Association to “understand what steps are needed” to improve safety at the province’s courthouses.
"The ministry will be reviewing the facts of this incident to determine what, if any, further measures may be taken,” Sharma said.
"There are various factors behind the location of a courthouse, including its proximity to other law enforcement agencies, in-custody centres and other community programs and services. These need to be taken into account to ensure the smooth running of the courts and justice system."
Sharma also wished both victims a “speedy recovery.”
Lavallee appeared in court Monday, he remains in custody and will be back before a judge later this month.
