Federal justice minister responds to Eby, other premiers on bail reform after Surrey murder
Posted July 24, 2024 6:59 pm.
Last Updated July 24, 2024 7:13 pm.
The federal minister of justice penned a response Wednesday to the country’s premiers who demanded bail reform following the release of a man accused of killing a Surrey woman.
On Monday, Canada’s premiers sent a letter to the prime minister demanding a review of the nation’s bail system, citing Adam Troy Mann, who was released from jail just days before allegedly murdering Tori Dunn.
The 30-year-old woman was killed in her Port Kells home on June 16, 2024.
The premiers, including B.C.’s David Eby, invoked the death, saying the suspect in Dunn’s murder had been involved in multiple violent crimes in the past.
“I brought this to Halifax, this case, and around the table, there were examples from other premiers, where the laws have failed to address the concerns of people in their provinces as well. The result of that is a letter to the federal government asking in a very straightforward way that they look at the implementation of these new bail laws that they put in place,” Eby said, referencing Federal Bill-C48 which altered how bail is granted last year.
On Wednesday, Minister of Justice and Attorney General of Canada Arif Virani posted a joint response with Minister of Public Safety, Democratic Institutions and Intergovernmental Affairs Dominic LeBlanc to social media.
In a brief two paragraphs, the ministers say Ottawa has done its share of the work on keeping violent offenders in custody and now the provinces need to do theirs.
“Canadians expect their elected representatives, at all levels of government, to work together to keep them safe. That’s why we urgently passed Bill C-48 last year — making it harder for repeat violent offenders to get bail, addressing all provincial requests, and prioritizing community safety,” the ministers said.
Virani calls Dunn’s death a tragedy but says his office listened to the provinces and territories when they wanted changes to the nation’s Criminal Code around bail.
He says now it’s up to them to “step up and enforce the law”.
“Provincial courts, prosecutors and police hold all the data needed to evaluate how the bail system is working. We expect provinces and territories to collect and share that data diligently, as they committed to do.”
Speaking at an unrelated event Wednesday, Eby said it’s currently impossible to know how the decision to grant Mann bail was made, due to a publication ban.
He says he’s working with the BC Prosecution Service to ensure the ban no longer applies to Mann’s case.
“How can we ensure that Ottawa’s rules work for British Columbians and keep them safe — that they have all the information that they need, as well to be able to respond to this terrible, terrible situation?” Eby asked.
“I’m very hopeful, and my expectation is that the prosecutors will be successful in getting that information released. There is absolutely no reason why that information should be confidential. Every British Columbian deserves to know what happened.”
