'A kick in the stomach': St. Albert Mountie's widow saddened Liberals to shelve bail bill

The widow of a murdered Mountie vows to continue to fight for a bail-reform bill named for her husband, the day after the federal government announced it will not support the legislation.

"I'm not backing down from this," Shelly Wynn said Wednesday. "This is something that means a lot to me. It would mean a lot to Dave, and it would mean a lot to his family as well."  

Her husband, RCMP Const. David Wynn, died in hospital on Jan. 21, 2015, four days after he was shot in the head while responding to a stolen-vehicle call at the Apex Casino in St. Albert.

His killer, a career criminal named Shawn Rehn, was out on bail at the time.

Rehn, who killed himself hours after he shot Wynn, had been convicted of 68 criminal offences. At the time of shooting, he faced 27 outstanding charges, including one count of failing to comply with a court-ordered weapons prohibition.

Shelly Wynn said she believes her husband would still be alive today had the court system known about Rehn's criminal past at the time he was granted bail.

"I don't think that everyone is stopping to think about what it would be like to have that loss," said Wynn. "I understand that our justice system is very complex, and I know that there are many changes that need to be made. But it has to start somewhere." 

Bill S-217 was introduced in the Senate earlier this year by Ontario Senator Bob Runciman. It passed the Senate last month with the support of Liberal and Conservative senators.

St. Albert-Edmonton MP Michael Cooper sponsored the bill when it moved to the House of Commons.

During second reading on Tuesday evening in Ottawa, the Liberal government said it will oppose the bill.

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But Cooper promised to keep fighting for Wynn's Law, a bill that would make it harder for criminals to get bail. He plans to lobby backbench Liberal MPs to vote in favour of the bill when it is back in the House for a vote in February.

"What happened to Const. Wynn should never have happened, but we cannot turn back the clock," Cooper said. "But I believe that as parliamentarians, we must do what is necessary to ensure that something like that doesn't happen again.

"I believe the best way to do that is to close the loophole that exists within the Criminal Code that makes it discretionary for the prosecutor to lead evidence about the criminal history of someone seeking bail," he said.

"We've got to close the loophole, and the government has provided, in my view, no compelling reason why that loophole should not be closed. That's why I was so disappointed that what we saw [Tuesday] night was a display on the part of the Liberal government of putting partisan politics ahead of public safety."

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The bill would have expanded the grounds courts consider when deciding whether or not an accused should be granted bail by specifically including consideration of criminal records and outstanding charges.

But such factors are already considered when courts decide whether an accused is a flight risk, as they are required to do, Sean Casey, parliamentary secretary to Justice Minister Jody Wilson-Raybould, told the House.

Specifically requiring the consideration of an accused's criminal record would create "uncertainty for the multiple other bail provisions that do not specifically reference the criminal record," Casey said.

The second clause in Bill S-217 would have required the Crown in bail hearings to lead evidence to prove prior convictions, outstanding charges, failures to appear or offences against the administration of justice.

That could lead to adjournments and hearings taking longer, Casey said.

"No one in the criminal justice system, including victims, would benefit from excessive delay and the staying of criminal charges," he said.

Casey said the Liberal government is working to make the bail system more efficient. Nobody wants to see serious criminal charges stayed because of unreasonable delay, Casey said, which can happen if bail decisions are not made in an effective, timely way.

"While I think that the Senate public bill's proposed amendments are well-intentioned, they are not the solution to this complicated issue. Rather, they would import delay and confusion and would likely have unintended legal and operational consequences for the bail process."

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In the statement issued by Cooper, Runciman said the Liberals put on a "shameful display" by not supporting Wynn's Law.

"It's the height of hypocrisy for the Liberals to suggest … that this bill could contribute to court delays," Runciman said. "This is the same government that has failed miserably in its responsibility to ensure judges are appointed to fill vacancies in a timely manner.

"The only obligation imposed by this bill is to ensure an accused criminal record is introduced at a bail hearing — something that is already standard procedure in most courts in this country."