lectroni
ipy justi

IN-THE aftermath: of the Gustal’sen
Lake standoff, we were treated to the
absurd posturing of our very own,
fatter day Wild Bill Harcourt, claimn-
ing the success of the operation
somehow lies with his government.

“By Leo Knight
Commentary

The rei ality is Me. Harcourt and
his: current: flavor of the month,

“Attorney General Ugai Dosanjh. are

anything but tough onaasy and order
Cissttes, | .
While the Gustafsen ‘Lake situa-
-tion was ata fever pitch, an assistant
_deputy minister (ADM) in the AG's
department was busy holding ‘a cen-
erence with the regional directors of
the province's corrections facilities.
The ADM, D.J> Demers, was trying
40 convince the corrections admistis-
trators that more people should be
put on the electronic monitoring pro-

gram (EMP) when sentenced to cus.’

tody. by the courts

In a confidential Aug. 22 memy,,

“Demers wrote, “1 want cz wach of you to.
_feview swith -your appropriate man-

agers anc EMP staff, ways to imme-

diately increase your regional counts 2

= within. current. program. criteria?”
“Translation: Put more people on

electronic monitoring, notin jail.

He asked ther to consider devel-
oping a regional “reverse onus” prac-
tice for short-term servers. In other
words, figure out why people sen-
tenced to jail should be put into a
correctional facility i ae Opposed to the

rections have the capability of check-
ing to sce if the crook is at home, and
the bad guy doesn’t know when they
night’ check.; Small consolation
maybe, bat it's something,

The AG is also trying to change
the way the EMP is applied. Today, if
a judge recommends EMP in sen-
tencing, the individual is reviewed by
corrections classification olficers.
They have the option of accepting or
rejecting the — recommendation
dependent on the information in the
person's file, the police record, vic-
lin’s statements. and controllability
of the prisoner.

In fact. Bret Shane Neff —~ the
recenUy deceased, lone suspect inthe
death of tite Melissa Deley oe was
reviewed and rejected by the classiti-
cation officers after he had been rec-
ommended for the program by the
courts, Under the proposed new sys-

current practice of establishing why

they should be put on the EMP as an

alternative to jail,

_ He also suggested, astonishingly,

a greater use of the “no equipment”
_ option for short-term servers. This is
great, The courts sentence an offend-
Eero jitil and this attorney generai is

uggesting they should be pui‘on the

electronic monitoring. program even

if there is no equipment with which
sto monitor them. It is akin to telling
2 the criminals theyre groundeds: ts
there no. end. to, this government's
toughness? :

«Not that having the equipment is
aff that great either: With the existing
system, unless a corrections staffer:
, ‘physically asks the computer. to,
“check on’a specific individual fitted”
fith an EMP device, no ong. will ever
know if the bad ‘guy takes a powder.
No bells go off. No lights flash.
Nothing happens. But, at least cor-

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ic monitoring:
ice prevails

tem, there will be no review of i
judge's recommendation.

Of course. the infallibility of
judges is absolute. Isn't it? The same

Bret Shane Neff headbutted a guard

on Aug, 27 while in New Haven
Corrections Centre in Burnaby: On
Aug, 28 he pleaded guilty and the
Crown requested a 30-60 day jail
semtence, Neff’s own defence coun-
sel recommended a 30-day sentence.
Provincial Court Judge Selwyn
Romilly, in his infinite wisdom and
infallibility, gave Neff a $500 fine.
Instead of being in jail, Neff
alleged to have abducted, tuped and
killed 10-year-old Deley. ;
The air must be pretty Chin up
there in Judge Romilly’s. Upper
Lonsdale neighborhocd,
Leo Knight, a former police officer, is
a partner with) Paladin Security in
North Vancouver

Friday, September 22, 1995 ~ North Shore News - 9

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