Would you like to put that number into perspective?

Most rank and file Liberals in BC are probably wishing they didn’t have to watch, or read, news on BC politics.  It's not good; although looking at the smile pasted on Premier Christy Clark's face one would be hard pressed to see she's aware of problems in liberal-land.

CTV News at 6 ran one story after the other last night, which would lead people to wonder how much longer they can continue without running to the medicine cupboard for Extra-Extra-Strength Tylenol.

Let's see ... what kicked things off?   

Well a provincial court judge hammered the Liberal government after having to kick charges against a person who had tried to lure a young teen, for sex, through use of his computer.  This case has been in the system, since his arrest, which was two and a half years ago!

At the moment there are approximately twenty five hundred (2,500) cases in a similar position, of being thrown out for delays that have hit the 18 month mark.  

Would you like to put that number into perspective?  Plus or minus a hundred people or so, it would be the entire population of say a community the size of  Chetwynd ... or Chase ... Elkford ... Lillooet ... Logan Lake ... Pemberton ... Princeton ... Sicamous ... or Tumbler Ridge.

And what did the judge, who had to throw the case out, call the system? 

Abysmal!

Pedophiles --- drug pushers --- people accused of violent assaults.  People charged with these crimes are about to go free because the criminal system in BC is broken, and all the BC Liberal government can do is .......... study it some more.

British Columbia’s judiciary will still be woefully short

A story in the Vancouver Sun says:
BC has appointed nine new Provincial Court judges, the government announced Tuesday … move comes as the province faces intense criticism over delays in the justice system, including from judges themselves.

  

Four of the new judges announced Tuesday will be appointed to the Greater Vancouver and Fraser Valley regions, with another two being placed in Prince George.  One new judge has been appointed to each of Nanaimo, Smithers and Penticton.

The judges were assigned in response to the court's specific needs throughout the province, the government said.

Even with these nine new judges added today, by the BC Liberal government, we are still going to be woefully short of what is needed.

A previous report showed a need for 143 full time judicial equivalents ... and last month (January 2012) there were only 121.3 full time judicial equivalents on the bench across the province. That makes us still short 13 judges.

A farewell from Barry Penner

Retiring BC Liberal MLA Barry Penner

BC Liberal MLA, and former Cabinet Minister, Barry Penner was first elected to the British Columbia Legislature in the general election of 1996.

His MLA website has this information, “About Barry Penner”

Barry served as Attorney General for the Province of British Columbia from December 1, 2010 until August 18, 2011 when he announced that after four successful election campaigns, he would not be seeking re-election to the British Columbia Legislature. Barry also stepped down from his ministerial portfolio to spend more time with his young family.

Barry Penner previously served as BC’s Minister of Aboriginal Relations and Reconciliation from October, 2010 to March, 2011 and Minister of Environment from June, 2005 to October, 2010. He was BC’s longest serving Environment Minister.

Barry was raised in Chilliwack, BC. He received his Bachelor's degree from Simon Fraser University after studying government and economics, and subsequently earned his law degree from the University of Victoria. Barry was employed as a BC park ranger during his summer breaks. In 1991, he worked for an International law firm in Bangkok, Thailand and then practiced law in Chilliwack until his election to the Legislative Assembly in 1996.

Barry was first elected to the BC Legislature in 1996 for the electoral district of Chilliwack. He helped lead the charge against the Sumas Energy 2, Inc. (SE2) power plant, which would have added 2.5 tonnes of air pollution every day into the Fraser Valley. He also helped rally community support which resulted in the new Chilliwack Courthouse. Barry was re-elected in 2001 to represent the riding of Chilliwack-Kent, and was re-elected in 2005, and again in 2009

I for one would like to say thanks for his work and dedication not just to the constituents of Chilliwack Hope … but to all of BC

CLICK HERE for a farewell video from soon to be former Chilliwack Hope MLA Barry Penner

BC POLITICS --- this week in the news

With the resignation of former Attorney General Barry Penner, Christy Clark now has two by-elections to call in the next few months --- by-elections that John Cummins and the BC Conservatives say they will be in.  There’s news on that … plus much more ... so read on! Remember the full stories can be accessed by clicking the link in the story title.)

Future jobs need planning now

… global economy goes from being a media phrase to something that threatens our jobs … it’s suddenly very real and very personal … and when hope gets lost, fear takes hold. Fear that our future will be bleak. Fear that what we’ve worked for will be lost … leadership and action can trump fear, and cynicism … need to stand together, to work together, and make the changes required … need to face our future not with fear or retreat, but with confidence and advancement on our strengths…

CLBC admits it pushed too hard to get clients out of group homes

… Community Living BC expressed regret for the harm caused and promised that, except in certain circumstances, nobody will be moved against their will in the future … follow recent reversals by CLBC in which it canceled plans to close homes and move residents ... spoken to families and apologized for the agency’s tactics.  “We regret the stress that we caused in their lives and we’re doing what we can to make that a better situation for them,” he said …

Community care crisis demands a resolution

… the crisis in community living has stirred something significant in us, demanding immediate action and decisive leadership.  In many ways it has become the barometer of how we are doing in B.C., striking a fundamental cord chord of justice and fairness….

Elections B.C. wants to pre-register 16- and 17-year-olds for voting

…  elections agency wants to use high school classes to pre-register teens to vote when they turn 18 … presented by chief electoral officer Keith Archer to a committee of MLAs Thursday … attempt to increase voter participation among 18- to 25-year-olds, the age group that's the least likely to vote …

YOU'RE RIGHT CHRISTY … those are things most British Columbians support

How serious is the Christy Clark government about ensuring the safety of the people of BC?

When she was running to replace Gordon Campbell, as leader of the BC Liberal Party, she told News 1130 that the courts needed to hand down harsher sentences to high-profile criminals.

"When we find criminals that are out there selling drugs, we should put them in jail and we should keep them in jail. I think this revolving door of justice is an absolute disgrace."

Now let’s fast forward 9 months (September 2011) ... we have one story after the other coming out in the news media about Joseph William Hammer (a cocaine dealer in Prince George), who had his case thrown out by Provincial Court Judge Michael Brecknell.   

And why was that?

His (Judge Brecknell) interpretation of the Canadian Charter of Rights and Freedoms was that a person had the right to be tried within a reasonable time … and that should be within 18months.  A lack of resources were the reason it had taken over three and a half years to get a verdict in the case of cocaine dealer Joseph Hammer, and because of that, Hammer was to be released. 

He went on to say an "unrepentant drug dealer" should "now be able to be free of the consequences of this very serious offense... should alarm and concern the community.”

Clark sworn in as BC premier amidst laughter

After starting with several jokes, Lieutenant Governor Steven Point administered the oath of office to the provinces 35^th premier.  Now British Columbians are asking the fate of several major issues of concerns, and how they will be dealt with by Premier Christy Clark, and her new cabinet.

Who the new cabinet members are is all over the news, and so I will not spend much time mentioning them, with the exception of two.