B.C.’s rural criminal trials have a transportation problem, Supreme Court warns

B.C. Supreme Court is warning that some criminal trials might not be able to proceed in rural locations due to the sheer distance involved.

Associate Chief Justice Heather J. Holmes issued a notice on the court website on Thursday stating that until last year, in-custody accused people were housed in local police detachments for the duration of their trials, if the drive between the nearest correctional centre and the courthouse was too far to travel twice a day.

However, this changed when RCMP and other police forces said they were unable to provide staff and space to keep accused people in custody.

The affected courthouses include:

• Cranbrook
• Dawson Creek
• Fort St. John
• Nelson
• Powell River
• Prince Rupert
• Revelstoke
• Rossland
• Smithers
• Terrace
• Williams Lake

The court’s sheriffs have been trying to find a solution to these cases, but often the solution is for the accused person to be transported by chartered airplane between the pre-trial facility and the courthouse each day of the trial.

A working group has been trying to find solutions to the issues involving these courthouses, but until those arrangements are in place, each case will need to be examined separately, according to Holmes.

She states that for each in-custody criminal trial scheduled at one of the above courthouses, Crown and defence counsel should contact B.C. Supreme Court three months before the start of the trial to arrange a case management conference.

If it appears that no arrangements will be in place for the trial to proceed, Holmes said that might mean that the trial is adjourned until more suitable arrangements are available, the trial might have to be moved to a courthouse closer to a correctional centre or the person might have to be released from custody.

B.C. Premier David Eby said on Friday that a crucial role of the B.C. government is to ensure that people across the province have access to key services, including health care, education, and the justice system.

“We have a serious challenge around recruiting and retaining sheriffs,” Eby said.

“They’re essential for trials to be able to go ahead. We’ve done a lot of work in the province around providing access to legal advice for people, including the Civil Resolution Tribunal, taking some of the load off of the courts through a virtual tribunal accessible to anyone in the province, and legal aid clinics available in every corner of the province.”

Eby added that cases involving ICBC are also down and the government has implemented changes in family law cases to minimize court appearances, which are all designed to reduce demand on the courts.

“It is a huge priority for us to make sure that those cases get to court and get tried,” he said.

BC Conservative Critic for Attorney General Steve Kooner said in a statement that the NDP has not prioritized public safety and court operations.

“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,” he said.

“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.”

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