Why the justice minister won't weigh in on the Glen Assoun case just yet
No one in authority wants to talk about the wrongful murder conviction of Glen Assoun. At least not yet.
Assoun spent 17 years in prison for the killing of his girlfriend Brenda Way, but was exonerated earlier this year following a review by the Criminal Conviction Review Group (CCRG) in the federal Justice Department.
On Friday, supporting documents for that review were released. They show evidence compiled by an RCMP officer, Const. Dave Moore, could have led to a new trial for Assoun.
But that evidence was destroyed and never shown to Assoun or his lawyers.
Questions to federal Justice Minister David Lametti, who received the CCRG recommendation and ordered a new trial, were referred to the office of Ralph Goodale, the minister of public safety and emergency preparedness.
Goodale's office issued a statement.
"Canadians must have confidence that our criminal justice system is fair and impartial and protects against potential miscarriages of justice," said the statement.
"In this particular case, the minister of justice reviewed the case and was satisfied a new trial was necessary to ensure a fair process. The case against Mr. Assoun was dismissed, and we respect the decision of the court."
Moore's files were part of an RCMP database called ViCLAS (Violent Crime Linkage System). His research, which suggested serial killer Michael McGray was a more likely suspect in Way's murder, was destroyed while Moore was on vacation.
In response to questions CBC News forwarded to Lametti's office, the RCMP in Nova Scotia issued a statement.
"A new version of the ViCLAS system now in use will not allow users to delete another user's files," it said.
Justice minister seeks opinion of conflict commissioner
On Tuesday, Mark Furey, Nova Scotia's attorney general and minister of justice, said he cannot comment on the Assoun case at this time.
"There's been some suggestion that my previous employment may compromise my abilities to make impartial decisions, so I've asked the conflict of interest commissioner to review the circumstances," Furey told reporters.
"And when I hear back from the conflict of interest commissioner, I'll be in a better position to comment."
Unclear when conflict commissioner will rule
Prior to being elected as a Liberal MLA and being appointed justice minister, Furey had a 32-year career with the RCMP.
Joseph Kennedy took on the job of conflict of interest commissioner earlier this year after he retired from his position of chief justice of the Nova Scotia Supreme Court.
There's no word on when Kennedy might rule on Furey's case, which was only forwarded to him on Tuesday morning.
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