The Supreme Court of B.C. says scheduled criminal trials for in-custody accused persons may not be able to proceed in some court locations due to the lack of spaces to house the accused.
The court issued the noticed Thursday (April 30), warning of the possible impacts to some criminal trials at 11 court locations: Cranbrook, Dawson Creek, Fort St. John, Nelson, Powell River, Prince Rupert, Revelstoke, Rossland, Smithers, Terrace and Williams Lake.
The notice says that it may not be possible for criminal trials to proceed as scheduled if the accused person is in custody and the courthouse is distant from the nearest pre-trial correctional centre. It also applies to voir dires, pre-trial applications and sentencing proceedings.
The issue has been going on since the beginning of the year.
The notice says that court sheriffs – for each case impacted by the change – have been trying to find solutions to allow each trial to proceed. Often the solution has been to transport the accused by a chartered plane between the pre-trial facility and the courthouse each day, but sometimes those flights are unavailable.
For several months, a working group of B.C. government officials and police representatives have been looking into interim solutions.
The Supreme Court of B.C. says it’s been advised the working group is hoping to have housing or transportation arrangements in place “soon” for in-custody accused persons to attend the trials in some of the affected locations. Arrangements for other court locations are expected to follow in the coming months.
But it’s unclear when a long-term solution will be implemented, the court says.
B.C. Conservative MLA Steve Kooner says this is a failure of the B.C. NDP to manage the basic operational needs of the province’s justice system.
“Rural communities across this province such as Williams Lake are already dealing with a wave of crime from repeat offenders who are constantly being arrested and then released. Because of the NDP government’s failure to manage the justice system, they will now be forced to deal with even more offenders who can essentially act with impunity,” Kooner said Friday.
In an emailed statement from the Ministry of the Attorney General said the government is “aware of the pressures on custodial housing capacity affecting some courthouses in northern B.C. and in the interior.”
The ministry says its working closely with the courts, the RCMP, B.C. Sheriff Service, police and securities branch and B.C. Corrections to ensure people in custody can attend court as required and to minimize disruptions to proceedings.
The ministry added that the interim alternative housing and transportation arrangements are being used, and will continue to roll out over the coming months.
“In addition, partners are developing case‑by‑case operational protocols to prioritize proceedings that require immediate support, so they can proceed on schedule.”
Kooner, the Conservative critic for the attorney general, said that some trials are being delayed or moved. In some cases, he claimed, “suspects may even be freed from custody.”
However, the Ministry of the Attorney General says it is “not aware of any individual who has been released as a result of these operational challenges.”
Until last year, in-person accused persons were housed in local police detachments for the duration of their trials, if the drive between the nearest correctional centre and the courthouse wasn’t manageable twice a day. For trials that were several weeks or more, the accused was generally returned to the correctional centre each weekend.
However, the notice says this changed when the RCMP and other local police departments were unable to continue providing staff and space to keep custody of the accused. The arrangement was discontinued as a result.
Now, for some courthouses there are no facilities available in the local community to house in-custody accused persons over the course of their trials, and if the twice-daily drive between the courthouse and the correctional centre isn’t manageable.