Acting AG taking riot court system recommendation seriously

VANCOUVER (NEWS1130) – Should BC have a special court system to process rioters faster?

News1130 is following up on a key recommendation in Thursday’s riot report that the acting attorney general is taking seriously. Shirley Bond says it’s a good idea and her office will be speaking with the chief judge.

“But… also the option of a procedure that says we’re going to concentrate on making sure that once charges are in the court system we have a way to move them through expeditiously. So, of course, we’re going to have that discussion.”

She says something similar is in place: A team of lawyers dubbed ‘The Riot Prosecution Team’ is ready to go.

Bond adds she, like many, is frustrated by the slow process of laying charges but feels the Vancouver Police Department is doing the right thing by gathering as much evidence as possible on each suspect before moving forward.

She says while the recommendation strayed away from the riot report’s mandate, it reflects the fact people want to make sure rioters are brought to justice.

News1130 legal analyst Michael Shapray says if the government is serious about moving charges through quickly, it should consider the recommendation. “The question is do we have the courtrooms, do we have the judges, and do we have the prosecutors to run a system like that?”

He says getting it up and running would be a costly and lengthy process. “I think you would have to have [resources] dedicated to that and I don’t think the system has enough resources as it is.”

During the riots in Britain, courts were open through the night to deal with hooligans, though it’s been argued by police and the government that comparing our system with the UK’s is comparing apples with oranges.

To date, no charges have been laid in connection with the June 15 Stanley Cup riot. The VPD says it’s getting closer and is reporting continued success in identifying suspects on its riot website.

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