3 new judges to take the bench at Ottawa courthouse
Appointees include former lawyers for Larry O'Brien, Mohamad Harkat
Three new judges will take the bench in Ottawa next month as the province continues to deal with a landmark Supreme Court ruling that put dramatic pressure on the sluggish court system to speed up.
Norman Boxall, Vincent Clifford, and Marlyse Dumel have all been appointed to the Ontario Superior Court of Justice, according to a Friday news release from the Ministry of the Attorney General's office.
The appointments come less than a month after Attorney General Yasir Naqvi, the MPP for Ottawa Centre, announced in January that there would be two new positions created in Ottawa.
A ministry spokesperson told CBC News that one of Friday's appointments was to fill an existing vacancy.
The appointments come as the Ontario government tries to address the fallout from what's come to be known as the "Jordan decision."
Last July, the Supreme Court of Canada set new rules for an accused's right to be tried within a reasonable time frame. Superior Court trials must now wrap up in 30 months, from the time the charge is laid until the verdict is delivered.
Since the ruling came down, Ottawa judges have stayed or withdrawn charges in at least two cases due to court delays — in one instance, setting free a man accused of murder. The Ontario Crown Attorneys Association estimates the ruling could eventually lead to about 6,000 criminal cases being stayed or withdrawn.
Represented Larry O'Brien, Mohamed Harkat
The new judges are among 13 people being appointed across Ontario to help the province get through a substantial backlog of cases.
Boxall, the most experienced of the three new Ottawa judges, was called to the bar in 1980 and has been the president of both the Defence Counsel Association of Ottawa and the Criminal Lawyers' Association.
He has also served as defence lawyer for Ottawa terror suspect Mohamed Harkat.
Clifford was called to the bar in 1991 and has taken part in more than 15 homicide cases in eastern Ontario. He has also been part of the University of Ottawa's law faculty since 2010 and has helped train lawyers in the Yucatan, a Mexican state.
Clifford defended Christy Natsis, a well-known dentist in Pembroke, Ont., who was found guilty in May 2015 of impaired driving causing death and dangerous driving causing death after a fatal 2011 crash that killed Bryan Casey.
He also represented former Ottawa mayor Larry O'Brien after he was charged following the 2006 municipal election campaign. O'Brien was later acquitted.
Dumel has practiced law since 2002 and has been with the Public Prosecution Service of Canada for the past 13 years. She is also a founding member of the Afro-Caribbean Cotillion, where she mentors young women.
The three new judges' appointments begin March 1, the ministry said.