Charlotte County court closures prompt call to stay proceedings in 3 cases
A lawyer opposed to last year's closure of the Charlotte County courthouses is now calling on a judge to stay proceedings in three cases involving men from Grand Manan and Campobello.
"This is a clear denial of access to justice," said Joel Hansen, arguing that the additional time and expense of getting to court in Saint John violates his clients' Charter rights to equal protection and equal benefit of the law.
There are three named applicants, including Carter Thompson, of Grand Manan.
He faces multiple charges including driving while suspended and refusing a breathalyzer.
Gordon Harris of Grand Manan is charged with driving without consideration for others.
Scott Brown faces a charge under the federal Fisheries Act.
If the stays are granted, the cases won't go to trial without an appeal.
"The question before this court is whether the accused ... are suffering fundamental discrimination in comparison to other citizens in New Brunswick so as to offend the principles of fundamental justice," wrote Hansen in his brief.
Decision on March 1
Provincial court Judge Anne Dugas-Horsman heard arguments Thursday and is expected to give her decision March 1 on whether to grant the stays
When Hansen was asked why she travelled from Moncton to hear the matter, he suggested all provincial judges in Saint John had a conflict in dealing with the issue.
"Particularly Tonning," said Hansen, referring to Judge Henrik Tonning, who used to sit in provincial court in St. Stephen before it closed Nov. 1, 2015.
The court also heard from Gerald Grant, a solicitor for Public Prosecutions Canada.
He argued place of residence is not a recognized component of discrimination as is race, national or ethnic origin, colour, religion, sex, age, or mental or physical disability.
He said one's address is not a personal characteristic.
"People are free to choose where they live," he told the court.
Challenging policy, not law
William Richards, representing the New Brunswick Crown, argued the applicants are not challenging a law, but rather a policy decision on how to spend public money.
And he said the court should not be drawn into ruling on policy.
"The issued raised by the applicants is, respectfully, the reason we have elections in our free and democratic society," wrote Richards in his brief.
"There is a remedy and it's a political remedy," he told the court.
Dugas-Horsman said she'd been thinking about the issues and posed a few questions of her own.
She posed a hypothetical situation, where a resident of Grand Manan would choose not to fight a speeding ticket, even if innocent, if the travel costs were considered to be a deterrent.
Costs questioned
Richards said the court doesn't know if the costs are significant.
"They're not laid out in the affidavits," he said.
"Just that it will cost more."
"There are countless communities in New Brunswick that don't have courts and people have to travel," he said.
After the province announced its intention to close the St. Stephen courthouse, an opposition group formed under the name of the Charlotte County Barrister Society.
In Oct. 2015, the society filed an application for a judicial review of the court closure decision.
However, that bid was stopped by the Court of Appeal, which ruled the group had waited too long under the Rules of Court.
Hansen says the substantive issues were never resolved.
