Pickton victims' families hopeful about inquiry

Families of Robert Pickton's victims are expressing relief and hope now that a public inquiry has been called into their loved ones' deaths.

The details still have to be worked out, but B.C.'s Attorney General Mike de Jong promised a wide-ranging commission with the powers to compel testimony from witnesses.

For de Jong, it boils down to a few basic questions about the 50 women who disappeared, six of whom Pickton was convicted of killing.

"The nature of the investigation, the question of whether more could have been done sooner, are we in a position to learn," de Jong said. 

Last month, Vancouver police released a report on its role in the case. The force admitted it made serious mistakes but also said the RCMP must accept some blame because the case was spread between RCMP and Vancouver jurisdictions.

RCMP have yet to respond publicly to those allegations but a spokesman said they welcome the public enquiry. 

Cynthia Cardinal, whose sister Georgina Papin was one of the women Pickton was convicted of killing, suggested the inquiry may finally bring justice.

"We yelled, we were so happy because we were so looking forward to this day … this is probably the first day that is going to give us some hope to get justice for our sister the proper way," Cardinal said.  

Another sister, Elena Papin, said what was divulged in the courtroom was just a fraction of the story behind Pickton, his crimes and how the police handled the case.

"We firmly believe that there is more to it," she said. "We don't know how many other criminals [are] committing those crimes, but we will get to the bottom of it."

And for the Papins, there will also be a funeral, because the remains of their sister, long held as evidence, will soon be released to the family.