Jean calls for report on clogged court system
Wildrose Leader Brian Jean unveiled a private member’s bill Tuesday that would give Albertans a deeper look into the province’s backlogged justice system.
Jean’s bill would compel the justice minister to table a report on the system’s performance, which he hopes would help unclog a system that has been beset by delays. Last week, Edmonton’s chief Crown prosecutor stayed 15 cases in provincial court, citing a lack of resources in her office.
“The only thing more unacceptable than a trial that takes too long is one that simply doesn’t happen,” said Jean at news conference at the Alberta legislature Tuesday.
The report would highlight delays, mistrials and plea bargains, which Jean hopes will inspire action to break up the backlogs.
Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley said it’s not that simple.
“If I could tell you one thing in the system that’s causing a backlog that I could change instantly, I would’ve done it already,” she said.
Ganley said the department has been using a court case management system that allows the first couple of appearances to happen without the accused appearing before a judge. The minister has also hinted that more money will be in the budget to address the problem and, at question period Tuesday, she said more resources are needed.
The Alberta Crown Attorneys’ Association said 200 cases were stayed across Alberta in the first two months of 2017. Eighteen of those were impaired driving cases.
The association attributes the caseload to a growing population, and hopes the government will create an additional 50 prosecutor positions, plus hire additional support staff. The association estimates this would cost the province about $10 million to $12 million a year.
Jean, who practised law in Alberta for 10 years before getting into politics, says resources aren’t the problem and it doesn’t help to “throw money at a system that is over-clogged.”
“If we don’t measure the problem, we are never going to fix it,” said Jean.