Legacy of ‘Hanging Judge’ under debate
New Westminster city council is to have a “conversation” about Justice Matthew Begbie, B.C.’s so-called “Hanging Judge,” whose name and likeness are familiar sights around the city.
The Law Society of B.C. said last week it will remove a statue of Begbie from its lobby because it is offensive to indigenous peoples and “a reminder of the judge’s role in the hanging of six Tsilhqot’in chiefs.”
The move comes shortly after New Westminster council began a discussion about reconciliation, which could affect both the Begbie statue outside the city’s provincial courthouse and the name of Begbie Street, Coun. Patrick Johnstone said. At a council meeting last week, a community delegation continuing the work of Canada’s Truth and Reconciliation Commission mentioned the Begbie statue and place names as issues requiring discussion. Johnstone said Begbie’s legacy will be “part of a much larger conversation.”
Johnstone said he wouldn’t object to the removal of Begbie’s statue, a sentiment also expressed by Coun. Bill Harper.
“This is a very old city, but it’s also a very multicultural city,” Harper said. “People here want to recognize traditions and also be accepting.”
Begbie was appointed the first judge of the colony of B.C. in 1858. In 1869, he was named chief justice, according to a plaque in Victoria’s Bastion Square.
In 1864, Begbie imposed death sentences on five First Nations leaders charged with killing 20 white people in the clash known as the Chilcotin War.
Two years ago, Premier Christy Clark declared the chiefs “fully exonerated of any crime or wrongdoing.”
According to a New Westminster web page about Begbie Square, Begbie’s reputation as a hanging judge is “undeserved … given that the death penalty was mandatory in murder cases at this time.”