British Columbia’s attorney general is firing back, following criticism from the legal profession about her comments regarding a recent voyeurism case.
In letters published this week, both the Canadian Bar Association’s B.C. Branch and the Law Society of B.C. raised concerns Sharma risked interfering with the independence of the judiciary and undermining the rule of law.
The case, first reported by Global News, involved a West Vancouver man who received a conditional discharge after admitting to using a hidden camera to capture nude images of an international student living in his home.
In his ruling, the judge found that a “marital intimacy deficit” contributed to the man’s conduct.
Responding to the case on Sunday, Sharma told Global News, “I think it’s very important that the judges of our province are properly trained to understand a trauma-informed victim-focused approach to this type of predatory behaviour.”
Those comments prompted both the law society and the CBA to pen letters to the attorney general.
“What was reported – along with your Twitter post – left the impression that you think the sentence is not appropriate, that the sentencing judge is not sufficiently aware of trauma-informed practice, and that the training and education for all judges may be lacking in this area,” the CBA wrote on Tuesday.
“These comments, made with the weight of your office, risk undermining the public’s confidence in the criminal justice system.”
In a letter dated Monday, the Law Society of B.C. raised similar concerns.
“It is our opinion that judges can expect the Attorney General to defend the role of the justice system rather than imply that judges are not sufficiently trained and have thereby imposed an inappropriate sentence,” law society president Christopher McPhereson, K.C., wrote.
The letter states that trust in the court system requires confidence that judges can resolve disputes fairly and impartially.
It goes on to argue that B.C. government officials, including Premier David Eby, have made comments on the justice system that “tread on interference with the administration of justice by politicizing justice issues.”
It pointed to Eby’s comments about reforming the bail system and comments made after the stabbing of three people in Chinatown by a man on release from a forensic mental health facility as examples.
On Thursday, Sharma defended her comments.
“This is not about just one case — it’s about the fact the majority of people, we know, do not come forward to the justice system or to police with stories of sexual assault,” she said.
“Its a problem with our system. And for myself as attorney general I own my share of that, and I would expect the judiciary, the police and every independent actor in our justice system to do the same.”
She went on to say there are “no excuses” for sexual violence, and that the goal is to ensure victims feel comfortable coming forward.
Angela Marie MacDougall, executive director of Battered Women’s Support Services, told Global News the legal profession does need to advocate for the justice system, but that the two organizations were also “missing the point.”
“I don’t believe the AG criticized the judge, but I am happy to,” she said. “They decided to make a decision that was, in effect, to render a perpetrator, a predator, harmless in their actions — and that judge’s decision has most definitely created the biggest chilling effect that we’ve seen in months in trying to address sexualized violence in the legal system.”
In a statement to Global News earlier this week, the Office of the Chief Judge told Global News that all Provincial Court judges receive on-going education “designed to maintain and keep up to date on new advancements in the law while ensuring they are sensitive to the social and cultural context of the communities in which they work.”
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