Superior Court grants McHale application for Fantino charge

Posted on January 3, 2010 | Comments Off

UPDATES:

Jan 13/10: NDP justice critic Peter Kormos says McGuinty is wrong to dismiss allegations [PDF] (CD98.9fm story)

Hamilton Spectator, Jan 13/10: Fantino case before Cayuga court on Friday [PDF]

VoiceofCanada, Jan 12/10: McGuinty shows contempt for judge’s decision in Fantino charge

VoiceofCanada, Jan 12/10: Law professor: gov’t should appoint outside prosecutor for Fantino charge

VoiceofCanada, Jan 10/10: Christie Blatchford ends Fantino’s propaganda war vs. McHale

AG letter to McHale, Jan 11/10: Crown intervenes to move Fantino criminal hearing from Feb 03 to Friday, Jan 15/09 at 0900 at Cayuga courthouse, 55 Munsee St., Cayuga. [MAP]
National Post, Jan 12/09 [PDF]: 1. Osgoode Hall law professor says gov’t has conflict of interest and should appoint Crown from outside province, and that dropping the charge would create a very “unfortunate impression that Fantino received special dispensation.” 2. Government will NOT be asking Fantino to step down.
A spirited rebuttal by blogger ‘Dead Reckoning to a TorStar column defending Fantino’s handling of Caledonia: More Caledonia nonsense from the Toronto Star. (Maybe the Star’s columnist should read his own paper’s editorial from Dec 21/06: Time for a reality check on Caledonia, link available inside this VoC post: ‘History has been made this week! Toronto Star & St. Catharines Standard: “The rule of law is paramount…’)

UPDATE: On Jan 08/10 Justice of the Peace Brown issued a summons [PDF, REPRINT] for Fantino to appear at the Cayuga Courthouse at 1000 on Feb 03/10 to answer the charge of Influencing/Attempting to Influence Muncipal Official.

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On Dec 31/09 Justice Crane of the Superior Court of Ontario granted CANACE Executive Director Gary McHale’s application for an Order of Mandamus to compel a Justice of the Peace to issue process for a Criminal Code charge of ‘Influencing Municipal Official’ against OPP Commissioner Julian Fantino.

Julian Fantino, April 07/07: email to Haldimand Council
Ontario Court of Justice (Jan 19/09): McHale information for Fantino prosecution
Superior Court ruling, Dec 31/07: McHale v. Attorney General of Ontario, 2009
Attorney General, Jan 08/10: letter to McHale (AG taking over prosecution)
Gary McHale, Jan 11/10 (incorrectly dated Jan 06): letter to Attorney General (conflict of interest)
Attorney General, Jan 11/10: letter to McHale (intervention to move date of hearing)
Gary McHale, Jan 11/10: letter to Attorney General (Q: Is Crown staying charge?)
National Post, Jan 11/10: Ontario to appoint Crown to prosecute OPP Chief (Law professor re gov’t conflict of interest) [PDF, REPRINT]
CANACE news release, Jan 11/10: Fantino already receiving Preferred Treatment

The ruling capped off a two and a half year battle to hold Fantino accountable for the threatening email he sent to Haldimand Council on April 07/07 which was intended to keep councillors from showing support for McHale and his followers. For complete media coverage:

CaledoniaWakeUpCall.com feature: FantinoGate

Fantino will be served with a summons or a warrant for his arrest will be issued.

Just the tip of the iceberg

Fantino’s email to Haldimand Council is only the tip of the iceberg in his campaign to try to silence peaceful, law-abiding, non-native activists:

Ontario Small Claims Court, Feb 02/09: McHale/Vandermaas amended statement of claim re Fantino defamation

How was Fantino cleared by two ministers?

The question reporters need to ask is why two separate ministers in McGuinty’s government refused to investigate complaints into Fantino’s conduct when they were first filed in 2007 and later in 2008:

VoiceofCanada, Jan 21/09: EXPOSED: How the McGuinty gov’t refused to investigate criminal allegations against Fantino

VoC Comment

I am proud of Justice Crane for making such a courageous decision. It surely was not lost on him that his signature endorsing McHale’s Order of Mandamus meant that the second most powerful police officer in Canada would be charged with a criminal offence. I thank him for his courage and his wisdom.

As someone who has stood with McHale from the beginning I wish I could convey how incredibly touching it is to me and to the others who stood with us to know that the essence of our democracy – the rule of law – is safely in the hands of such jurists.

I was in the courtroom when Gary McHale – with no law degree or legal representation – went toe-to-toe against three government lawyers before Justice Crane. It was, in a word – heroic. Just as it was the previous three times before Justice Marshall when McHale and fellow CANACE founder Jeff Parkinson took on the Attorney General to define Canadian law with respect to private prosecutions in Parkinson v. R (2008 & 2009) and McHale v. R, 2009 back in July.

VoiceofCanada feature: Caledonia Lawsuits

Once again, McHale made me proud just to listen as he articulated his arguments before a learned judge who has vindicated our belief that all Canadians are subject to the law – even the Commissioner of the OPP.

Is it not interesting – and inspiring – that accountability and justice in Caledonia is slowly being restored, not through the efforts of those in positions of power, but by ‘ordinary’ Canadians who decided to take a stand no matter the cost?

No matter what happens with the case itself, no police chief or commissioner in the future is going to try to threaten municipal officials into not doing their jobs of speaking out for their community in a time of crisis. And for that, we can thank Gary McHale. He has proven, for the fourth time, that justice lives in my province.

I encourage you to read Gary McHale’s list of impressive accomplishments for yourself by clicking on the RESUME link at this page on the CANACE website.

Several lawyers, and at least one politician of note have called McHale to congratulate him on his stunning victory. Doors are opening. Important doors.

NOTE: CANACE co-founder Jeff Parkinson was the first to break the Fantino story on New Year’s Eve; I was in Montreal at the time with no computer access. Here’s his bulletin: