According to a CKNW report today, Attorney General Shirley Bond has said that there will be no further time extension granted to the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry, meaning its report must be delivered to the provincial government by June 30, 2011. She apparently cites the Commission’s $3 million cost as the reason for the deadline.

This news is very concerning for the families of the murdered women. Many of them were denied the closure of a criminal trial when a former Attorney General said it would not be in the public interest to proceed with twenty first degree murder charges against Robert William Pickton. They waited almost a decade for a public inquiry to be held into the police and Crown actions and expected it to be a thorough, independent and transparent public proceeding. Now, as it becomes increasingly evident that the RCMP and VPD have withheld important documents from the Commission, as the families’ application for more witnesses has not yet been determined, and as individual police officers have sent over a dozen new lawyers into the hearings halfway through, the families are questioning the validity of the exercise.

Although the Commission was established on September 29, 2010, it inexplicably did not start its evidentiary hearings until October 11, 2011.  Peel Regional Deputy Chief Jennifer Evans, who prepared a report for the Commission, has testified that document disclosure to her was “frustrating” and “ridiculous”.  The families fear that the public inquiry may be superficial and inadequate.  Time will tell.

On March 23, 1997 Robert “Willy” Pickton attacked a downtown eastside Vancouver sex trade worker at the Port Coquitlam property he shared with his brother.  The Crown laid charges of attempted murder, forcible confinement, assault with a weapon and aggravated assault against him but stayed the charges as the trial approached.

Why?

The VPD and the RCMP had Pickton in their sights as a prime suspect in the disappearances of other downtown eastside sex trade workers from August of 1998 onwards but didn’t apprehend him.  He was able to kill dozens of women, as many as 49 in all, until February 5, 2002.

Why?

These are the central factual questions posed by the terms of reference of the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry.  The anguished families of Pickton’s victims have long sought a public inquiry into these questions, and others.  Now that the Commission is finally hearing testimony from the police officers actually involved in the investigations, will the families get the answers they need and deserve?  Or will the sudden appearance of a host of lawyers for individual police officers to augment the teams that the VPD and RCMP have had to look out for their interests for the last decade throw a spanner in the works?

…..

The latest report from The Vancouver Sun’s Neal Hall is here.

The next witness at the Missing Women Commission of Inquiry will be Vancouver Det. Cst. Lori Shenher, who had primary conduct of the missing women investigation for the VPD from June of 1998 until late 2000.  Before joining the VPD, she was a Calgary journalist.  She is also credited as a technical advisor and writer on 25 episodes of Da Vinci’s Inquest, where a fictional missing women’s case was a recurring theme on the show.  

In July and August of 1998, Shenher received information from Bill Hiscox that a Port Coquitlam pig farmer named Robert “Willy” Pickton was likely responsible for the disappearances of women from Vancouver’s downtown east side.  She determined that the information was credible, and soon learned that Pickton had been charged with the attempted murder and forcible confinement of a Vancouver sex trade worker the year before.  (The Crown dropped those charges; the Commission is supposed to inquire into the facts concerning that decision)  Although three more informants independently came forward with information fingering Pickton as a likely serial murderer, neither the VPD nor the RCMP apprehended him.  On February 5, 2002, a junior Coquitlam RCMP member investigating an apparently unrelated matter found evidence of some of the missing women on a property owned by Pickton and his brother and sister.  Pickton was subsequently convicted of six murders and twenty other first degree murder charges against him were stayed, the Attorney General decising that “it would not be in the public interest” to prosecute him further. Pickton is believed to be responsible for as many as 49 murders, which would make him Canada’s most prolific serial murderer.  The case reportedly cost Canadian taxpayers as much as $200 million dollars to investigate, prosecute and defend.

Today’s session began with David Neave unexpectedly arriving and introducing himself as the lawyer for former VPD Insp. Biddlecombe and advising he intended to cross-examine witnesses and would need time to prepare. Biddlecombe’s role in the investigation of Canada’s worst serial killing was well-documented by VPD Deputy Chief LePard’s August 2010 report, but Biddlecombe did not apply for standing when the Commission sought applications a few months later.   An updated list of the lawyers for the various police interests is set out 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. and Tony Paisana

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. and Vanessa Christie

Brock Giles (VPD): David Butcher, Q.C. and Anila Srivastava

Gary Greer (VPD): Rick Henderson

Fred Biddlecombe (VPD): David Neave

Peel Regional Police: Linda Bordeleau