To the Editor:
The law, the police and the courts usually operate in a laudable fashion. Their whole purpose is to provide a safe secure and orderly environment within which the pursuit of group and individual objectives goes much smoother in an atmosphere of peace and order and good governance,
The following situations from the recent past give cause for unease.
Only a few years ago, a recent arrival from the Ukraine was tasered to death in the Vancouver International airport. The tasers were under the control of four representatives of the law.
The man had been wandering around in the airport for some time. Those who were to meet him had been delayed in traffic. He could not speak English, he seems disoriented and was getting more and more anxious as time passed.
His behavior eventually attracted attention. He was surrounded, warned to settle down and then tasered. He fell to the floor kicking and screaming, not knowing what had hit him or why. When further warnings to settle down went unheeded he was tasered again and again and again. By the time he quieted down he was dead.
Robert Latimer was found guilty of a criminal offense when he took the life of his severely disabled daughter. He was incarcerated and eventually released on parole. He immediately returned home to help tend to the needs of his family and his farm. He is there to this day. The terms of his parole do not allow him to leave the country. He is thus, not eligible, for a passport.
Can anyone explain why allowing Robert Latimer to take his family abroad on a trip would constitute a real and imminent threat to the peace order and good governance of this country or any other. The man has already been to hell and back.
Quite recently, in Regina, a man with terminal cancer was raided by law enforcement. He had a license to produce medical marijuana for himself. He grew it in a warehouse that he owned,
He not only produced medical marijuana for himself but also grew for several other licensed users. This is, also, quite within the present provisions of the law.
Unfortunately, for the grower, some of his clients had allowed their licenses to expire. At the time of the raid, he thus had more dried product in his possession than the law would allow.
There was no evidence that he was peddling dope to the public at large - young or old.
He was found guilty and given a six month sentence. The court dedided to allow him to serve his sentence in community service. Otherwise he would surely die in jail. His warehouse was confiscated.
Can law enforcement and the courts not find something better to do with their time and resources than harass someone in this fashion
It would be a gross exaggeration and quite unfair to suggest that these examples are typical of our entire criminal justice system. They are NOT. When the system does, however, behave in a way that is unjust or irrational or nonsensical we have a responsibility to let them know. Otherwise, we will deserve what we get.
Just the other day, the court granted Robert Latimer his passport. You see there is hope for us yet!!
Doug Cowling, Yorkton, SK
