(Halifax) Relatives of victims killed in Nova Scotia mass shooting say they feel ‘deeply discouraged’ over public inquiry into horrific 2020 crime that claimed 22 lives , according to their law firm.
Posted at 4:54 p.m.
With a week to go before proceedings begin in Halifax, Patterson Law released a statement on Monday saying its clients fear their role in the investigation will be “unduly reduced or even actively curtailed.”
The Nova Scotia law firm, which represents 23 families and individuals, said the delayed federal-provincial inquiry has offered little information about the role witnesses will play in the proceedings.
Additionally, Patterson Law is concerned that the fact-finding portion of the investigation will be truncated due to the delays, meaning evidence presented at the inquest may not be fully explored.
“We share our clients’ deep discouragement at the lack of information about these public proceedings,” the statement read.
The inquiry’s mandate requires it to file a final report by 1er November.
At this time, it is not yet clear who will be called to testify, how they will be asked to do so and whether lawyers representing the families are allowed to question them or make submissions during the proceedings, says the statement.
The commission’s lead attorney, Emily Hill, did not directly answer those questions in an emailed statement, and commission officials declined a request for an interview.
Mme Hill said the commission will continue to consult with participants about gaps in the factual record and which witnesses they would like to hear from.
“A public inquiry is not a trial, nor is it about assigning blame,” she added. Public inquiries are about change. The commission’s job is to determine what happened, why and how it happened, in order to make recommendations that will ensure that it does not happen again. »
Three months after the central Nova Scotia murders, the federal and provincial governments pledged to conduct some sort of “review” of the case, but families of the victims and legal experts have come forward to call for a more rigorous joint investigation. A series of protests prompted both levels of government to change course.
The investigation has been tasked with determining what happened during the shooter’s carnage, which began on April 18, 2020 in Portapique, Nova Scotia, where 13 people were shot and properties set on fire. Nine other people were killed the next day as the shooter escaped police during a pursuit of more than 100 kilometers. The commission was originally scheduled to begin hearings last October.