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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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 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.
[ ...Suite ]Date de parution : 2024-11-12
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Crown attorneys call on Manitoba government to help address 'dangerously heavy caseloads'
10-01-2025
Advocacy group says province losing experienced prosecutors to other provinces with better pay
A group representing Crown attorneys in Manitoba 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.
The Manitoba Association of Crown Attorneys (MACA) said in a news release Friday that the grievance it filed with the provincial government in April 2023 to address what it called "dangerously heavy caseloads" won't be heard by an arbitrator until October 2025.
In the meantime, it said, the pressure put on Crown attorneys in Winnipeg and regional prosecution offices continues to mount, in part because of increasing crime in Manitoba — noting the 99 homicides recorded in the province last year was more than double the number seen a decade earlier.
That pressure is being compounded by "increasingly complicated cases, stricter timelines for hearing criminal matters and inadequate staffing, which leaves those working with insufficient time to prepare for court," the release said.
Prosecutors are also dealing with "an unprecedented volume of disclosure to review" given advances in technology, the association said.
The release noted that with the impending rollout of footage from RCMP bodycams, that volume will only increase — in particular for regional and circuit Crown attorneys.
"Although the government, and its predecessors, have met with MACA to discuss these concerns, it has not taken tangible steps to resolve the issues that have given rise to the grievance," the news release said, adding the province's delay in dealing with the issue "puts the public at risk."
Manitoba's Justice Minister Matt Wiebe said the government has hired more clerks, slashing vacancies across the province to reduce court delays.
In a statement, Wiebe said the NDP has also hired more than 30 new Crown attorneys since taking office and is working on recruitment and retention strategies, including signing a new deal to improve compensation for attorneys.
But MACA said Manitoba has recently lost experienced Crown attorneys to British Columbia, Alberta and Saskatchewan.
"In most cases, departing Crown attorneys have trained in the Manitoba Prosecution Service and have benefited from their significant experience here, but they can move to another province and get paid the same as the most senior Crown attorneys in Manitoba, but with far less experience," the release said.
https://www.cbc.ca/news/canada/manitoba/crown-attorneys-grievance-province-workload-1.7428341