Winnipeg Free Press

Winnipeg Free Press (Newspaper) - February 08, 2014, Winnipeg, Manitoba C M Y K PAGE A14 EDITORIALS WINNIPEG FREE PRESS, SATURDAY, FEBRUARY 8, 2014 Freedom of Trade Liberty of Religion Equality of Civil Rights A 14 COMMENT EDITOR: Gerald Flood 204- 697- 7269 gerald. flood@ freepress. mb. ca winnipegfreepress. com EDITORIAL A JUDGE'S finding that a murder charge against a father had so little basis in evidence that she wondered why it was even laid, let alone prosecuted, needs to be reviewed by authorities outside of Manitoba. At trial, even when presented with evidence supporting exoneration of Roderick Blacksmith, the prosecutor insisted on continuing the case. This is a blow to the confidence Manitobans need to have in the justice system. Mr. Blacksmith was charged with second- degree murder after his foster son died of a brain injury in November 2008. At trial, the Crown's case - inventive and unsupported - fell apart. The prosecutor's own witness, a pediatric pathologist, testified the fatal injury to the baby's head could not have happened in the two hours the accused was with the child. The time was the so- called window of opportunity in which the prosecution said Mr. Blacksmith committed the offence. But the case essentially was fabricated from bits of circumstantial evidence. Mr. Blacksmith was seen as a good father, loving to the foster son. Medical experts agreed the child had suffered an injury causing the brain to swell, which ultimately killed him. Testimony revealed he frequently hit his head and had been repeatedly accidentally injured while with others in the days before his death. Queen's Bench Justice Deborah McCawley referred, at one point, to potentially exonerating evidence revealed in mid- 2009. The Crown, unaware of that evidence until at the trial last month, nonetheless decided to " forge ahead" rather than fold. Judge McCawley pulled no punches in her decision: Mr. Blacksmith was not found not guilty on a technicality; no evidence supported a case against him. In other words, the Crown's office, which is supposed to proceed with charges that have a reasonable chance of ending in conviction, did not do its job. The case oddly had passed muster at a preliminary hearing, where grounds for trial are supposed to be tested. Mr. Blacksmith, she pointed out, has had a murder charge hanging over him for five years. He has not been allowed to see his children in that time. The family was torn apart. Now the province may be forced to pay his legal fees. That, though, is not all that is owed to Mr. Blacksmith. He deserves a full account on how the Crown's office decided he might have killed his baby, maybe by shaking him violently. This must be reviewed by a Crown's office outside Manitoba and it must be made public. Population stats accurate Statistics Canada would like to correct the statement by Manitoba's chief statistician that there were errors in its processes and methods underlying the new population estimate for the province of Manitoba ( Statistics Canada underestimated Manitoba's population , Feb. 7). Prior to publishing the population estimates in September 2013, Statistics Canada carefully assessed and reviewed the methods, processes and findings leading to the population estimates for all provinces and territories. Statistics Canada found no evidence of any error in its processes and confirmed the new population estimates. The population estimates for Canada, the provinces and territories are based on a common, consistent, transparent and robust statistical methodology. JANE BADETS Director General, Social and Demographic Statistics Statistics Canada Ottawa, Ont. STARS not needed Re: Review delaying STARS service , Feb. 6. Helicopter evacuations make sense in two scenarios: when there are no roads or ambulances to get to patients, or when there is such a density of surface traffic that ambulances are unable to manoeuvre. Southern Manitoba fits neither description. Now we discover that during the hiatus, surface evacuations by ambulance have been comparable time- wise to those that would have been undertaken by STARS. Manitoba Health stopped contending a long time ago that the helicopter was faster; they only offer that it provides an advanced level of care. The money spent on STARS would be better spent cleaning hospitals, but there really isn't a photo- op in that, is there? It's time for the government to admit its mistake - unlikely to happen in the context of our election cycle. Perhaps the auditor general's report later this spring will help steer us back on the road to sanity and make patient safety a true priority in planning. DARRELL HORN Winnipeg Trucks should skirt city Terry Shaw is correct in stating that delisting Provencher Boulevard as a truck route would only put more pressure on Marion and Goulet streets ( Vandal playing politics with Provencher truck route issue , Feb. 6). Coun. Dan Vandal should, therefore, go even further and demand the delisting of all three as truck routes. The Perimeter Highway was constructed not only as a way for people to avoid travelling through a metropolitan area, but also as a solution to alleviate unnecessary truck traffic through residential areas, prolonging the life of city streets from the constant pounding of heavy semis. Whether it be a shorter route or not should have no merit; most semis using Provencher Boulevard or other Winnipeg truck routes should be spending more time on the Perimeter Highway. Dan Vandal may be playing politics, but he should be applauded. KIM TRETHART Winnipeg Lawsuit draws attention The problem with suing a person or organization is that it brings public attention to a dispute ( Mayor seeks apology from U of W student newspaper , Feb. 6). I hadn't read the Uniter editorial on Mayor Sam Katz, but now I'll be sure to make a point of seeking out and reading the article. DAVE FERGUSON Winnipeg Time for elected Senate Re: Senate salvageable ( Letters, Jan. 31). Yes, it is time for change in the Senate, but not its abolition. Rather, it needs to return to the reason for its implementation in the first place - to protect Canadians. At one time, the Senate was the government's inner conscience and a refuge for sober second thought. Of late, those principles have been abandoned. The integrity of what was once a respected and moral component of Parliament has all but disappeared. The present system of appointing individuals - selected by the prime minister - has resulted in a stacking of the political deck. The authoritative tentacles are intertwined, and commands are directed from the majority government in the lower house. The Red Chamber has fallen from grace. There needs to be procedures put in place to implement an elected Senate. Members should have no political affiliation to adulterate their wisdom and decisions. Politics only complicates and undermines the obligations and true purpose of the Senate's existence. Bold changes are needed to the Senate - an institution that once served to protect Canadians but which now serves the interests of those in power in the lower house. JOHN FEFCHAK Virden The state of the game Re: Take a lesson on being a good hockey parent , Feb. 1. Hockey Winnipeg indicates there are " lots of questions to ask about getting ( the Respect in Sport program) implemented." Why don't they contact some of those associations in Canada that have already implemented the course? In the meantime, parents should read Chapter 11, State of the Game , in Bobby Orr's book, Orr: My Story . The legendary defenceman ruminates on the responsibilities of parents, coaches, administrators and player agents. Unfortunately, politics plays a huge part within many sports organizations, and hockey is no exception. It's unfortunate that kids have to suffer as a result. JIM GRAY Winnipeg Fab four's tunes timeless Leonard Pitts' article Long, winding road downhill ( Feb. 5) is spot on. I have longed for the music from years gone by to return. Today, there's plenty of noise and flash, but not much in the way of musicality and melodies. The excitement and downright craze brought by the Beatles happened primarily due to the tunes they played. I attended the Fab: Beatles and Strings performance by the Manitoba Chamber Orchestra on Feb. 4. You could feel the electricity in the air, and the responses to those tunes were as exciting as they were in the past. Their tunes stand the test of time; they will always have something that connects with the listeners. AL SHELL Winnipeg HAVE YOUR SAY: The Free Press welcomes letters from readers. Include the author's name, address and telephone number. Letters may be edited. Letters to the Editor, 1355 Mountain Avenue, Winnipeg, R2X 3B6. Fax 204- 697- 7412. Email letters@ freepress. mb. ca Letters represent the opinions of their writers and do not reflect the opinions of the Winnipeg Free Press or its staff. �� LETTERS OF THE DAY Re: Student told not to smudge before school , Feb. 7. If Stephen Bunn's smudging violates the Crocus Plains Regional Secondary School's scent- and fragrance- free policy, can I assume that any member of the school community who participates in that other " fragrant" indulgence - cigarette smoking - will also be heading to the principal's office to be reprimanded? KAREN TEESE Winnipeg �� I applaud the school and the division for demonstrating sensitivity toward students and staff who might react towards strong scents. The policy, however, is being applied in a seemingly uneven manner. I cannot understand why, at the very least, the school could not work with Bunn to reach some sort of compromise. To penalize him while his fellow cigarette- smoking students receive no attention whatsoever clouds the situation and reeks of unfairness. TYLER ZDAN Winnipeg Double standard stinks TIM SMITH / BRANDON SUN FILES Stephen Bunn holds a pot of burning sage while smudging in his Brandon home. SCAN TO WATCH VIDEO OF THE MAKING OF THIS CARTOON T HE City of Winnipeg has been licensing so- called head shops for years, despite the fact that it's been a criminal offence to sell drug paraphernalia since 1988. Even now, after Winnipeg police charged one store owner and threatened others, the city is only considering tougher regulatory control to keep head shops away from schools. The city has taken the right approach to an industry that some people consider a bad influence on children. Police, however, have decided to follow the letter of the law, even though it is inconsistent with the changing values of society. Head shops sell items that can be used to smoke marijuana, such as pipes, bongs and roach clips, which were once regarded as harmless objects until police forces lobbied Ottawa to outlaw them on the grounds they glorified marijuana. There are many ridiculous laws on the books ( such as Sec. 163 of the Criminal Code, which makes it illegal to own or distribute a " crime comic book"), but police don't enforce them just because they are technically illegal. City police said the recent arrest was the result of numerous complaints. It seems odd that these shops are only now generating complaints, but the correct way to handle them is through regulation, much the way porn- video stores were managed in the past. Meanwhile, Ottawa should repeal its outdated law and hand the problem to municipalities, which can regulate them according to community values and ordinary land- use principles. Review wrongful prosecution Smoke the law A_ 14_ Feb- 08- 14_ FP_ 01. indd A14 2/ 7/ 14 6: 36: 14 PM ;