Today, Commissioner Oppal granted a request made by Richard Peck, Q.C., one of several lawyers recently appointed to represent police witnesses, to adjourn the testimony of Peel Regional Police Deputy Chief Constable Jennifer Evans to a later date in order to enable the newly retained lawyers to prepare to ask her their questions.

For those trying to keep track of all the police lawyers and their clients, the following is our best attempt at a current list.  There may actually be more police lawyers involved than the 17 listed below:

RCMP: Cheryl Tobias, Q.C., Jan Brongers, Judith Hoffman and Andrew Majawa

Vancouver Police Department and Vancouver Police Board: Sean Hern and Tim Dickson

Vancouver Police Union: David Crossin, Q.C.

Dr. Kim Rossmo (ex-VPD): Mark Skwarok

Doug Fell (VPD): Kevin Woodall and Claire Hatcher

Don Adam (ex RCMP): Janet Winteringham, Q.C.

Gary Bass (ex RCMP): Richard Peck, Q.C.

Earl Moulton (RCMP): Ravi Hira, Q.C.

Brian McGuiness (VPD): Greg DelBigio, Q.C.

Terry Blythe and John Unger (ex VPD): Edward Greenspan, Q.C.

Brock Giles (VPD): David Butcher

Gary Greer (VPD): Rick Henderson

Peel Regional Police: Linda Bordeleau

….

Background: Attorney General Mike deJong announced the creation of the Commission on September 29, 2010 and provided terms of reference that required it to deliver a report to the government by December 31, 2011. The Commission did not commence evidentiary hearings until October 11, 2011.  The government’s deadline was later extended to June 30, 2012. The Commissioner is Wallace T. Oppal, Q.C., a former judge and Attorney General.  The Executive Director is John Boddie, a former VPD sergeant who served with the VPD for 16 years. Neil Chantler and I represent the families of 25 women who went missing and were subsequently murdered.  From our clients’ point of view, the key factual questions encompassed by the terms of reference are: 1) Why were the attempted murder and other serious charges against Robert William Pickton dropped after his attack on a Vancouver sex trade worker in 1997? and 2) Why did the VPD and RCMP, who considered Pickton a prime suspect in the disappearances of Sarah deVries and other Vancouver women from August 1998, fail to stop or apprehend him until the RCMP accidentally found evidence, on February 5, 2002, that he had murdered as many as 49 women? 

The Commission has not yet heard testimony from any police officer who was actively involved in the investigations, although former VPD geographic profiler Dr. Kim Rossmo is scheduled to appear on Tuesday, January 24, 2012.