Well said Matt, being from the Edmonton area I’ve heard and read quite a bit about this tragedy. Apparently the EPS tried to talk to the CP’s office but got no where, so after great consideration they wrote and sent that letter. Hopefully justice for that child will be done…
I watched an interview with a Crown prosecutor not involved in the case. He lamented the intervention of the Edmonton Police Service. The gist of his over the top argument was, "Are all cases now to be decided in the court of public opinion?" Clearly he limply had nothing better to offer than argumentation by exaggeration.
I share Matt's concerns and thank him for this thoughtful column. It clearly appears the Crown Prosecution Service feels it is accountable to no one but themselves. As long as they are happy, everyone else, regardless of circumstance, can shut up and move along. This goes to the heart of the lack of accountability that is so evident in our public service and political class.
The Edmonton Police Service has acted in a measured fashion. The Crown Prosecution Service needs to come forward and publicly explain its actions in this rare situation. The Office needs to show that the attitude of being above public scrutiny, regardless of the situation, is not its first commandment.
This would not be necessary if our judges were not bleeding heart Liberals brainwashed into thinking the criminals are the victims not the actual victims. Liberal judges have an awful lot of blood on their hands in Canada, sadly this has been the case for my entire adult life, its just got increasingly worse as I've aged.
The Crown prosecutor does have a point, though. Look at how many politicians decided that the home invasion charges would be a great issue to demagogue about despite there being so little information about what actually happened and whether the charges truly are as unconscionable as claimed. The only reason the 5 hockey players were charged was because of public outrage after the initial investigation came to the correct conclusion that it was a messy situation but likely non-criminal.
The norm of politicians not talking about specific criminal cases has totally fallen by the wayside, and that's not a good thing. And it's pretty clear that the system itself has bowed to public pressure on several prominent cases, even if it came to the right conclusion in the end. None of this is good.
Marcel, thank you for your response. I do think my characterization that they are using argumentation by exaggeration does hold. We agree that we don't want politicians wading into the middle of the justice system. However, that must be balanced with the Prosecution Service being able to offer some kind of public explanation in exceptional circumstances such as this one. I doubt very few Albertans feel that justice is being seen to be done in this situation.
I am one of those who remains unconvinced about the state of the US. (I can’t see the forest for the trees where the trees are politicized media and polarized public with no way to determine actual fact from fiction.)
I know that in the US there are areas where cities have chosen to not properly enforce the law and it’s gotten out of control. I don’t know that I disagree with the federal government having a limit if things cross a certain safety line. (Would people be as upset if it was Obama who had done it? I don’t know - but that answer might help better delineate politics versus crime control vs over reach of power no matter who does it.)
To be fair, I think I’m much more worried about law and order now than I was 6 or 7 years ago, and my faith in public institutions to solve it is at an all time low. I don’t blame the police but do blame city councils who cut funding to police forces even if temporarily, and the federal government who made the catch and release problem we have today. Apathy seems to be aplenty. I don’t envy the police trying to do their job in the current catch and release state. But I think if funding cuts also made police forces impotent - which happened in the post defund the police period, then who are you going to use to actually enforce the law if there’s not an appropriate police presence?
I think time will answer some of these questions. I also think foreign influence is a much bigger concern than most give it credit for. But it seems to be a topic that many aren’t ready to hear. Complacency remains high in Canada - even while people complain and take steps to protect themselves, the systems that have created the current problems remain problematic themselves and politicians seem hesitant to try to fix what is clearly broken.
100 cheers to you for saying " I also think foreign influence is a much bigger concern than most give it credit for." Canada is completely penetrated and compromised. I was signs of this - with help of some journalists - years and years ago. Canada remains placid and passive like a sleepy cow. In the name of "tolerance and multiculturalism".
The fact that the Kirk shooter was identified and arrested due to his own family turning him in is a good sign that things will turn around. Turning Point may be the most aptly named organization ever right now, this shooting may turn out to be the "turning point" both canada and the USA needs...or at least we can hope!
I agree with the Edmonton police, however unprecedented it is, this child appears to have been abused for her entire short life. If this woman gets an 8 year sentence she would serve 5 or less years likely, meaning she could get the surviving kids back while they are still quite young and harm another one in a drug addled frenzy!
Mediocrity is a way of life in Canada… why? Because Canadians have settled for mediocrity for so long, they don’t realize there’s a better way. No one wants to take a bold step for fear of cancellation therefore, we get no action and mediocre outcomes.
I admire that the Edm Police Service had the wherewithal to actually do the right thing. Period. I don’t feel the need to qualify, explain, downplay my approval. It’s about time some segment of society stepped up to the plate. It remains to be seen what our bleeding heart prosecutors will actually do. And good on you to boldly go where precious few dare.
The guiding principle that our forefathers enshrined in the BNA Act, now called the Constitution Act, for our politicians, government officials, bureaucrats, police forces , Military and other assorted individuals elected or appointed , is “peace, order, and good government “. That principle has been forgotten and replaced with the self serving principle of getting re-elected, getting as much from the trough as possible, avoiding any challenges that may stir up troubled waters, giving in to any activist group (righteous or not) and abandoning anything resembling sound debate and cooperative action to move our nation forward . No wonder people are becoming increasingly discouraged, disappointed, disillusioned , jaded, disgusted and disconnected from our government.
Excellent article. I totally agree that we don't want politicized police, but the courts are failing to administer justice. I hate to say it is due to ideological reasons but I don't have an obvious other explanation.
The only issue is that I read in the Globe that the charge was 1st degree murder pleaded down to manslaughter. Maybe that was an error.
I'm with you on this one, Matt. I completely agree that the unique power of the police means the boundaries meant to contain that power need to be carefully observed and respected. I also agree that what the Edmonton police did here was a good thing. Can you imagine what it must do to a person's state of mind, putting your own life in jeopardy every day to keep the public safe only to see the perpetrators back on the street in short order, ready to continue where they left off? Over and over, while witnessing the horrors that cops do, day after day? That's soul destroying stuff. That this police force saw an opportunity to speak out like this and took it is a credit to them. I hope it's effective.
Progressive politicians and their supporters have normalized criminal behaviour through their refusal to enforce basic civil society rules of proper conduct.
It isn't that long ago that drunks were rounded up and taken to drunk tanks to thaw out and the public didn't have to put up with the nuisance and abuse of intoxicated people. Wow, we are far, far removed from that now. Progressives make excuses for everyone and created a two tier system where some are treated lightly, no matter how terrible their actions. Drug addiction is fueled by safe supply programs that increase the addiction to hard drugs and safe injection sites are allowed to encroach upon the lives of children. If that isn't bad enough, homeless encampments are also normalized and often are hubs of crime and drug abuse right in plain view, but shutting these encampments down is too tough for politicians to handle, even when it's -30.
The answer is obvious. We need the electorate to galvanize around a new generation of political leaders who will make public safety and respect for public and private property the central feature of the political discourse.
Amen. Here in Leduc Alberta the city placed a Hub for the homeless, the drug addicts, the stolen bikes, right beside a day care no less. So, parents and tiny children had to run the gauntlet to exit or enter. Yeah. And it took a lot to get those numpties to shift on that helpful, kind decision to help the disadvantaged & marginalized. Mmhmm. Makes you wonder at the level of cluelessness to locate that in the 1 block vicinity of 3 daycares (that I know of.) We have a municipal election coming up - I’m waiting for one of the existing councilors to door knock at my door.
Matt, I wrote previously that I was going to take a few weeks away from reading The Line (and various other publications) as I was just weirded out and annoyed (at life, I guess - not at you). Anyway, your headline that showed in my email enticed me to break my fast. Two points.
First, Matt, you keep referring to a "justice" system. I humbly request that you abandon that usage and instead use the truthful term, a "legal" system. In my lifetime it has always been clear that the intent of the legal system was NOT justice but the "even" [note my use of quotation marks] application of the law in an "approved" way. For ever so many years that was truly the best we could get but for, oh, the last twenty years or so [yes, it predates T2, although it absolutely got much worse under him] the "even-ness" has pretty much disappeared. I will allow others to comment further on the unequal allocation of importance the system offers to citizens of this country.
My second point is in some ways an extension of my first point. Since the founding of this country the general thrust of the legal system was to serve society as a whole. Inevitably, that meant that some groups were ignored and/or simply not considered adequately. Of late, however, it is clear to many Canadians that the intent of the legal system is to concentrate on the minority and to "protect" [hah!] that minority against the majority. That in turn has meant that the needs of the majority have been ignored with the result that now all of society suffers. [See bail "reform" and criminals not even needing to escape as they are already "free;" see police instructing the public to just give up; see ..... ]
Now, back to my previously scheduled ignoring of current events for a little while.
One only need remember the Karla Homolka fiasco to appreciate how inept and malleable our judicial system is. Undoubtedly there will be a statement to the effect that the accused is actually the victim. To paraphrase a lawyer, our courts are a crap shoot.
I agree with you that it is hard to say if the US will be able to pull itself out of state they find themselves. The problem is that many, especially in Canada do not understand the mood of the people. The assassination (yes, that is what it was) of Charlie Kirk is what drove people to conclude that it is time to take a stand, one way or another. But it wasn't the trigger.
The trigger happened August 22 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The senseless murder of a Ukrainian refugee on that city's light rail system by a mentally unstable individual, with previous trouble with the law, some 14 previous encounters. The most recent was in January where he was released by simply signing a promissory note that he would appear in court on a later date (by a Democrat judge). After stabbing her three times in the neck, he simply got up and walked away and no one, no one moved to help the young lady who was still upright and breathing. The still images posted from the attack are heartbreaking, I can't imagine the terror that young woman experienced.
Not a single mention by any member of the press, anywhere until the video was released (maybe leaked?) last Friday. Since then all hell broke loose. This happened in a Democratic run city, and the mayor's statement devoted one sentence to 'her thoughts and prayers for the victim' whom she did not even mention by name, and then followed with several paragraphs about the mental health of the perpetrator and how more needs to be done to help them. Her full statement is here : "https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/southend/charlotte-city-council-members-response-fatal-south-end-stabbing/275-34bda6f3-89e6-4061-939f-4a28be10f5d6
And then a high profile conservative media personality is assassinated in public for simply for wanting to debate ideas. The premise of his talk is to challenge people to prove him wrong in a public forum. One substack writers put it very succinctly - "The time for talk is over, because by killing the one person who only interest was in talking and debating, they have shown they are no longer interested."
In Canada we are not immune because much of the rot exists in our own institutions. I for one am glad that the Edmonton police are making a stand. My concern about this and the other recent stories about people defending their home from invaders is - why are we at this point?
I am old enough that I can remember when we had accountability in government. Particularly "Ministerial Accountability". If my department screwed up it was my responsibility and I resigned my post. That has long gone.
Unless and until Federal, Provincial and local elected officials are willing to accept responsibility for their actions and hold their civil servants responsibility nothing will change
A solidly written column about Canada's pathetically pathological injustice system, decades long. For most of that time, the "Liberals" ruled Canada and still do.
Well said Matt, being from the Edmonton area I’ve heard and read quite a bit about this tragedy. Apparently the EPS tried to talk to the CP’s office but got no where, so after great consideration they wrote and sent that letter. Hopefully justice for that child will be done…
Keep up the great work..
I watched an interview with a Crown prosecutor not involved in the case. He lamented the intervention of the Edmonton Police Service. The gist of his over the top argument was, "Are all cases now to be decided in the court of public opinion?" Clearly he limply had nothing better to offer than argumentation by exaggeration.
I share Matt's concerns and thank him for this thoughtful column. It clearly appears the Crown Prosecution Service feels it is accountable to no one but themselves. As long as they are happy, everyone else, regardless of circumstance, can shut up and move along. This goes to the heart of the lack of accountability that is so evident in our public service and political class.
The Edmonton Police Service has acted in a measured fashion. The Crown Prosecution Service needs to come forward and publicly explain its actions in this rare situation. The Office needs to show that the attitude of being above public scrutiny, regardless of the situation, is not its first commandment.
This would not be necessary if our judges were not bleeding heart Liberals brainwashed into thinking the criminals are the victims not the actual victims. Liberal judges have an awful lot of blood on their hands in Canada, sadly this has been the case for my entire adult life, its just got increasingly worse as I've aged.
The Crown prosecutor does have a point, though. Look at how many politicians decided that the home invasion charges would be a great issue to demagogue about despite there being so little information about what actually happened and whether the charges truly are as unconscionable as claimed. The only reason the 5 hockey players were charged was because of public outrage after the initial investigation came to the correct conclusion that it was a messy situation but likely non-criminal.
The norm of politicians not talking about specific criminal cases has totally fallen by the wayside, and that's not a good thing. And it's pretty clear that the system itself has bowed to public pressure on several prominent cases, even if it came to the right conclusion in the end. None of this is good.
Marcel, thank you for your response. I do think my characterization that they are using argumentation by exaggeration does hold. We agree that we don't want politicians wading into the middle of the justice system. However, that must be balanced with the Prosecution Service being able to offer some kind of public explanation in exceptional circumstances such as this one. I doubt very few Albertans feel that justice is being seen to be done in this situation.
I am one of those who remains unconvinced about the state of the US. (I can’t see the forest for the trees where the trees are politicized media and polarized public with no way to determine actual fact from fiction.)
I know that in the US there are areas where cities have chosen to not properly enforce the law and it’s gotten out of control. I don’t know that I disagree with the federal government having a limit if things cross a certain safety line. (Would people be as upset if it was Obama who had done it? I don’t know - but that answer might help better delineate politics versus crime control vs over reach of power no matter who does it.)
To be fair, I think I’m much more worried about law and order now than I was 6 or 7 years ago, and my faith in public institutions to solve it is at an all time low. I don’t blame the police but do blame city councils who cut funding to police forces even if temporarily, and the federal government who made the catch and release problem we have today. Apathy seems to be aplenty. I don’t envy the police trying to do their job in the current catch and release state. But I think if funding cuts also made police forces impotent - which happened in the post defund the police period, then who are you going to use to actually enforce the law if there’s not an appropriate police presence?
I think time will answer some of these questions. I also think foreign influence is a much bigger concern than most give it credit for. But it seems to be a topic that many aren’t ready to hear. Complacency remains high in Canada - even while people complain and take steps to protect themselves, the systems that have created the current problems remain problematic themselves and politicians seem hesitant to try to fix what is clearly broken.
100 cheers to you for saying " I also think foreign influence is a much bigger concern than most give it credit for." Canada is completely penetrated and compromised. I was signs of this - with help of some journalists - years and years ago. Canada remains placid and passive like a sleepy cow. In the name of "tolerance and multiculturalism".
Well written piece Matt.
The fact that the Kirk shooter was identified and arrested due to his own family turning him in is a good sign that things will turn around. Turning Point may be the most aptly named organization ever right now, this shooting may turn out to be the "turning point" both canada and the USA needs...or at least we can hope!
I agree with the Edmonton police, however unprecedented it is, this child appears to have been abused for her entire short life. If this woman gets an 8 year sentence she would serve 5 or less years likely, meaning she could get the surviving kids back while they are still quite young and harm another one in a drug addled frenzy!
Mediocrity is a way of life in Canada… why? Because Canadians have settled for mediocrity for so long, they don’t realize there’s a better way. No one wants to take a bold step for fear of cancellation therefore, we get no action and mediocre outcomes.
I admire that the Edm Police Service had the wherewithal to actually do the right thing. Period. I don’t feel the need to qualify, explain, downplay my approval. It’s about time some segment of society stepped up to the plate. It remains to be seen what our bleeding heart prosecutors will actually do. And good on you to boldly go where precious few dare.
The guiding principle that our forefathers enshrined in the BNA Act, now called the Constitution Act, for our politicians, government officials, bureaucrats, police forces , Military and other assorted individuals elected or appointed , is “peace, order, and good government “. That principle has been forgotten and replaced with the self serving principle of getting re-elected, getting as much from the trough as possible, avoiding any challenges that may stir up troubled waters, giving in to any activist group (righteous or not) and abandoning anything resembling sound debate and cooperative action to move our nation forward . No wonder people are becoming increasingly discouraged, disappointed, disillusioned , jaded, disgusted and disconnected from our government.
Excellent article. I totally agree that we don't want politicized police, but the courts are failing to administer justice. I hate to say it is due to ideological reasons but I don't have an obvious other explanation.
The only issue is that I read in the Globe that the charge was 1st degree murder pleaded down to manslaughter. Maybe that was an error.
The Crown said it was in a statement this week.
A possible other explanation is that the judges and prosecutors know that there is no more room in our jails and prisons.
I'm with you on this one, Matt. I completely agree that the unique power of the police means the boundaries meant to contain that power need to be carefully observed and respected. I also agree that what the Edmonton police did here was a good thing. Can you imagine what it must do to a person's state of mind, putting your own life in jeopardy every day to keep the public safe only to see the perpetrators back on the street in short order, ready to continue where they left off? Over and over, while witnessing the horrors that cops do, day after day? That's soul destroying stuff. That this police force saw an opportunity to speak out like this and took it is a credit to them. I hope it's effective.
Progressive politicians and their supporters have normalized criminal behaviour through their refusal to enforce basic civil society rules of proper conduct.
It isn't that long ago that drunks were rounded up and taken to drunk tanks to thaw out and the public didn't have to put up with the nuisance and abuse of intoxicated people. Wow, we are far, far removed from that now. Progressives make excuses for everyone and created a two tier system where some are treated lightly, no matter how terrible their actions. Drug addiction is fueled by safe supply programs that increase the addiction to hard drugs and safe injection sites are allowed to encroach upon the lives of children. If that isn't bad enough, homeless encampments are also normalized and often are hubs of crime and drug abuse right in plain view, but shutting these encampments down is too tough for politicians to handle, even when it's -30.
The answer is obvious. We need the electorate to galvanize around a new generation of political leaders who will make public safety and respect for public and private property the central feature of the political discourse.
Amen. Here in Leduc Alberta the city placed a Hub for the homeless, the drug addicts, the stolen bikes, right beside a day care no less. So, parents and tiny children had to run the gauntlet to exit or enter. Yeah. And it took a lot to get those numpties to shift on that helpful, kind decision to help the disadvantaged & marginalized. Mmhmm. Makes you wonder at the level of cluelessness to locate that in the 1 block vicinity of 3 daycares (that I know of.) We have a municipal election coming up - I’m waiting for one of the existing councilors to door knock at my door.
Matt, I wrote previously that I was going to take a few weeks away from reading The Line (and various other publications) as I was just weirded out and annoyed (at life, I guess - not at you). Anyway, your headline that showed in my email enticed me to break my fast. Two points.
First, Matt, you keep referring to a "justice" system. I humbly request that you abandon that usage and instead use the truthful term, a "legal" system. In my lifetime it has always been clear that the intent of the legal system was NOT justice but the "even" [note my use of quotation marks] application of the law in an "approved" way. For ever so many years that was truly the best we could get but for, oh, the last twenty years or so [yes, it predates T2, although it absolutely got much worse under him] the "even-ness" has pretty much disappeared. I will allow others to comment further on the unequal allocation of importance the system offers to citizens of this country.
My second point is in some ways an extension of my first point. Since the founding of this country the general thrust of the legal system was to serve society as a whole. Inevitably, that meant that some groups were ignored and/or simply not considered adequately. Of late, however, it is clear to many Canadians that the intent of the legal system is to concentrate on the minority and to "protect" [hah!] that minority against the majority. That in turn has meant that the needs of the majority have been ignored with the result that now all of society suffers. [See bail "reform" and criminals not even needing to escape as they are already "free;" see police instructing the public to just give up; see ..... ]
Now, back to my previously scheduled ignoring of current events for a little while.
Oh, and a good column, Sir.
One only need remember the Karla Homolka fiasco to appreciate how inept and malleable our judicial system is. Undoubtedly there will be a statement to the effect that the accused is actually the victim. To paraphrase a lawyer, our courts are a crap shoot.
I agree with you that it is hard to say if the US will be able to pull itself out of state they find themselves. The problem is that many, especially in Canada do not understand the mood of the people. The assassination (yes, that is what it was) of Charlie Kirk is what drove people to conclude that it is time to take a stand, one way or another. But it wasn't the trigger.
The trigger happened August 22 in Charlotte, North Carolina. The senseless murder of a Ukrainian refugee on that city's light rail system by a mentally unstable individual, with previous trouble with the law, some 14 previous encounters. The most recent was in January where he was released by simply signing a promissory note that he would appear in court on a later date (by a Democrat judge). After stabbing her three times in the neck, he simply got up and walked away and no one, no one moved to help the young lady who was still upright and breathing. The still images posted from the attack are heartbreaking, I can't imagine the terror that young woman experienced.
Not a single mention by any member of the press, anywhere until the video was released (maybe leaked?) last Friday. Since then all hell broke loose. This happened in a Democratic run city, and the mayor's statement devoted one sentence to 'her thoughts and prayers for the victim' whom she did not even mention by name, and then followed with several paragraphs about the mental health of the perpetrator and how more needs to be done to help them. Her full statement is here : "https://www.wcnc.com/article/news/local/southend/charlotte-city-council-members-response-fatal-south-end-stabbing/275-34bda6f3-89e6-4061-939f-4a28be10f5d6
And then a high profile conservative media personality is assassinated in public for simply for wanting to debate ideas. The premise of his talk is to challenge people to prove him wrong in a public forum. One substack writers put it very succinctly - "The time for talk is over, because by killing the one person who only interest was in talking and debating, they have shown they are no longer interested."
In Canada we are not immune because much of the rot exists in our own institutions. I for one am glad that the Edmonton police are making a stand. My concern about this and the other recent stories about people defending their home from invaders is - why are we at this point?
Excellent article, thanks Matt
I am old enough that I can remember when we had accountability in government. Particularly "Ministerial Accountability". If my department screwed up it was my responsibility and I resigned my post. That has long gone.
Unless and until Federal, Provincial and local elected officials are willing to accept responsibility for their actions and hold their civil servants responsibility nothing will change
A solidly written column about Canada's pathetically pathological injustice system, decades long. For most of that time, the "Liberals" ruled Canada and still do.