Fantino case before Cayuga court on Friday

Source:The Spec
January 13, 2010
Barbara Brown
The Hamilton Spectator
(Jan 13, 2010)
A criminal charge laid against Ontario Provincial Police Commissioner Julian Fantino will be before a Cayuga court on Friday, but the province's top cop is not expected to make an appearance.

Activist Gary McHale brought the privately laid charge, alleging the commissioner used his clout to illegally influence elected officials in Caledonia during the native occupation of a residential construction project on the town's main thoroughfare.

The court was not expected to deal with Fantino's charge until Feb. 3, but the Crown Law Office advised McHale yesterday it was moving the case ahead by nearly three weeks. A special prosecutor with the Justice Prosecution Unit is to speak on the matter Friday.

OPP Inspector Dave Ross said provincial police were aware the Crown was bringing the charge forward early, but said Fantino had not yet received his summons to appear in court.

The private charge arises from an e-mail Fantino sent in April 2007 to Haldimand County Mayor Marie Trainer and other councillors. The two-page letter stated members of council were not to support public rallies led by McHale, or make statements in support of the activist to the residents of Caledonia.

In the e-mail, which was widely circulated and reported by the news media at the time, Fantino said he would recommend the OPP contract with the county "not be renewed" if members of council expressed support for McHale.

McHale led a number of rallies in the town to protest what he called a two-tier justice system in the policing of the native occupation and counter protests by residents of Caledonia.

The activist has been pressing the courts to prosecute Fantino since August 2009 when he urged justice of the peace David Brown to lay the private charge. At issue was whether Fantino had "made a threat" in order to influence councillors from performing or failing to perform an "official act."

When the justice of the peace refused to issue a summons or warrant against the commissioner, McHale appealed to a higher court.

The matter came before Superior Court Justice David Crane in November, with McHale up against three lawyers -- two Crown attorneys acting on behalf of the Attorney General of Ontario and one lawyer representing Fantino -- all of whom argued the police commissioner should not be charged.

In his decision released on New Year's Eve, Crane granted McHale's application for a rarely used judicial remedy known as Mandamus -- an order from a superior court compelling a subordinate court, government body or public official to do something the person or body was duty-bound to do in the first place.

"I observe on the record in this application there is evidence of influenced behaviour by the Mayor and County Council in response to the Julian Fantino letter," said Crane, who ordered the justice of the peace to lay the charge.

Brown "issued process" against Fantino late Friday.

McHale said the Crown Law Office told him that because Fantino is a police officer, the ministry's practice is to assign a special prosecutor with the Justice Prosecutions Unit to handle the case.

McHale pushed the Crown to assign a prosecutor from outside Ontario, arguing the Crown was in a conflict of interest because its position that Fantino not be charged was on the record.

bbrown@thespec.com

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