Lawyer: bouncer law could have saved life
Lawyers representing the sister of a bar patron who died violently in Halifax more than two decades back are threatening to take the province to court if it doesn’t bring an existing law into force they say could have prevented a similar death outside the Alehouse in 2022.
Sujit Choudhry and two of his colleagues wrote to Brad Johns last month, when he was still justice minister, about proclaiming the Security and Investigative Services Act, 14 years after it received royal assent. In their letter, they demand Nova Scotia’s provincial cabinet immediately proclaim the law into force.
Choudhry represents Terri Giffin, whose brother, Stephen Giffin, got into an altercation with a bouncer and a bartender at Captain Eli’s Restaurant and Lounge on Dec. 23, 1999, and later died in hospital.
The two Captain Eli’s employees were charged with manslaughter, but eventually acquitted.
‘NO CHOICE’
“Should the provincial cabinet continue to fail to proclaim SISA into force, Ms. Giffin will have no choice but to commence an application for judicial review in the Nova Scotia Supreme Court to ensure the provincial cabinet meets its legal obligations under SISA,” Choudhry and two of his colleagues wrote in their letter to Johns dated April 16.
Choudhry, who could not be reached Friday for comment, wrote that he believes the law might have prevented the death of Ryan Michael Sawyer.
Police found the 31-yearold Ontario man unconscious on the sidewalk near the Halifax Alehouse around 1:15 a.m. on Dec. 24, 2022. Sawyer, who was home in HRM visiting family, was taken to hospital but died later.
‘URGENT NEED’
“The tragic death of Ryan Sawyer in December 2022 – which SISA could have prevented – underlines the urgent need to implement SISA’S comprehensive regulatory framework for private security, which would extend to bouncers not just at cabarets but at every establishment with liquor licences,” Choudhry wrote.
“It is Ms. Giffin’s position that the provincial cabinet ... is legally obligated to bring SISA into force. But Premier Tim Houston has publicly stated that the provincial cabinet has absolute discretion to never bring SISA into force, and has declined to do so.”
After Sawyer’s death, “it came to light that the same bouncer had previously been charged with assault” of another patron at the same bar, on October 10, 2022, Choudhry wrote.
Alexander Pishori Levy, 38, of Halifax and Matthew Brenton Day, 33, of Dartmouth were accused of assaulting a male patron after escorting
him outside the downtown bar Oct. 10, 2022.
‘WOULD NOT HAVE BEEN ON DUTY’
Late last month, a judge dismissed assault charges against the two former bouncers at the Halifax Alehouse after the alleged victim decided he no longer wants to be involved in the prosecution.
“Had SISA been proclaimed into force, (Levy) may have had his licence suspended after the October 2022 beating – and would not have been on duty the night of Mr. Sawyer’s death,” Chowdhry wrote.
This past February, the Crown filed a direct indictment to send Levy straight to trial in Nova Scotia Supreme Court on charges of manslaughter and criminal negligence causing Sawyer’s death.
‘WHOLLY INADEQUATE’
Choudhry dismissed measures announced last May by the province – including requirements that bouncers working at cabarets need to provide criminal record checks, take security training and complete a responsible beverage service program – as “a wholly inadequate substitute for SISA.”
The lawyer goes on at length in his letter about how the law, which won support from all parties, has languished on the books.
“SISA requires licencing for security guards,” Choudhry wrote.
“Through the licensing process, individuals would have to disclose any criminal charges brought against them, including any incidents involving serious injury from their actions. Moreover, licences may be revoked.”
Chowdhry pointed to “industry opposition” as the reason SISA has not been implemented. He criticized changes made by the province as “half-measures at best.”
Justice Minister Barb Adams could not be reached Friday for comment.
“This legislation was passed more than 13 years ago. While we have no plans for an immediate proclamation at this time, the government continues to consider issues around security staff at licensed establishments,” Deborah Bayer, who speaks for the Justice Department, said in an email.
“In May 2023, new requirements for cabaret bouncers to have training and a criminal record check was added as a condition of a cabaret licence.”