Saturday, January 5, 2013

Name and shame the prosecutors

Matt Gurney on Ian Thompson's acquittal:
It took two and a half years, but Port Colborne, Ont., resident Ian Thomson is finally done defending himself. First he fought the men who tried to murder him. Then, his own government.

Mr. Thomson was charged with ... two charges of careless storage of a firearm, one for each of the pistols he had removed from his gun safe ...  it’s hard to imagine a more cut-and-dry case of lawful self defence than firing on men trying to burn down your home while you’re inside it. But the Crown insisted on pursuing the charges of careless storage.

... On Friday, an Ontario judge acquitted Mr. Thomson of both those charges.

... First and foremost, Mr. Thomson did nothing wrong and should never have been charged in the first place.

... best of all, a message has been sent to overreaching Crown attorneys.
Good news for Ian Thompson. But I'd like to know why it is that in news stories like this the prosecutors are referred to only as the anonymous, Kafkaesque "Crown" or "prosecution". Why are these mutts not named and shamed as a real deterrent to other prosecutors similarly inclined to abuse the justice system? Not to mention paying Thompson for costs and aggravation or having their asses sued off.

Update:  According to Karen Selick:
... his problems may not yet be over. The Crown apparently said even before the decision was rendered that if Thomson were not convicted, the government would appeal. It seems the Crown wants Thomson to go to jail for storing his gun and his ammunition in the manner necessary to save his life. [What complete arseholes!  All the more reason to name them.]
 

 

8 comments:

terrence said...

They should be named and be required to pay any and all of Thomson's legal costs, as well as a very LARGE compensation package.

Anonymous said...

I wish to hell someone with more money than he knows what to do with would step up and sue the asses off the crown for having put this man through this appallingly asinine ordeal! All the way to the Supreme Court! This ignorant crap has got to stop!

Springer

JR said...

Good points. Get full compensation for costs and aggravation or sue their asses off!

Anonymous said...

Before you get too angry at the Crown Prosecutors here, you have to realize that these people are likely being directed in this matter by the Justice Minister for Ontario. A case with this much publicity cannot escape his direction. His name is John Gerretsen. Before this posting, he was Environment Minister for McGuinty, enacting Ontario's "cap and trade" system. He's just a politically correct liberal shill who of course will stop at nothing to enforce unreasonable gun control.

Patsplace said...


John P Gerretsen
181 King W
Kingston ON
613) 542-4205

That's the guy that more than likely is the chief cockroach in this nest of insects.

JR said...

Thanks for the name of the chief "cockroach" in this.

But, that the actual lawyers doing the work in court had marching orders from their more political higher-ups doesn't let them off the hook. Wrong is wrong and persecuting Thompson was clearly wrong. So, if they had any real courage and integrity they'd have refused to go along. They didn't refuse so deserve to called on it, by name. And what goes for the court room prosecutors, should be applied even more harshly to the political boss (John P Gerretsen) who gave the direction in the first place.

Patsplace said...

I should imagine that identifying the on-site lawyers would be a good start?

dmorris said...

"So, if they had any real courage and integrity they'd have refused to go along."

Courage and integrity are SO yesterday. Today the mode is,"cover your ass and don't cause trouble 'til you get your pension".

We're a generation beyond courage and integrity,to my profound regret.