This week the House of Commons passed the first reading of Bill S-217, also known as Wynn’s Law. The bill would change the Criminal Code by compelling the Crown to disclose the criminal history of the accused at a bail hearing.
Wynn’s Law is named for St. Albert Const. David Wynn who was killed in the line of duty in January 2015. Wynn was killed by Shawn Rehn, who was out on bail at the time despite having an extensive criminal history, including multiple outstanding charges.
The proposed change to the Criminal Code was first introduced by former Edmonton-St. Albert MP Brent Rathgeber and has since become a priority for current MP Michael Cooper.
“Had this law been in place at the time that Shawn Rehn was released on bail, I have no doubt that he would have been kept behind bars where he belonged and Const. Wynn would be alive today,” Cooper told the Gazette.
Provincially, a pilot project has started in Edmonton that will see Crown prosecutors attend bail hearings instead of police officers. This could become the standard throughout the province, because Justice Minister Kathleen Ganley is also seeking a ruling from Court of Queen’s Bench Chief Justice Neil Wittmann to clarify whether police can represent the Crown and conduct bail hearings. Depending on Wittmann’s ruling, the standard in Alberta may soon be that Crown prosecutors will staff bail hearings.
Having the prosecutors at the hearing will aid in presenting the complete criminal history of the accused and prevent dangerous criminals from being released to the public. The change stems from the Alberta Bail Review, which was written by former federal Crown prosecutor Nancy Irving. Hundreds of lawyers, police, and legal advocates were consulted for the report and the majority agreed that Crown prosecutors are better equipped to present at a bail hearing and they have a better understanding of the law. To have the Crown present at the hearings will require the province to hire more prosecutors. Ganley estimated earlier this year that it would cost $4 to $6 million to make the change.
On both the provincial and federal justice fronts, politicians are working to close loopholes that may have prevented the death of Const. Wynn and instead kept a lifelong criminal like Shawn Rehn behind bars.
Bill S-217 passed through the Senate by a wide margin and hopefully it will pass through the house with similar haste. Wynn’s widow Shelley MacInnis-Wynn appeared in front of a Senate committee in June with a powerful message about it only took four seconds for Rehn to take David Wynn’s life.
“In those four seconds a constable was taken away from his community, a husband was taken away from his wife, a father was taken away from his three sons and a son and brother was taken away from his mother and sisters, in four seconds,” she said.
Wynn was a devoted father and husband who made a difference in this community. The system failed him, but we can change our system to prevent similar deaths. It is admirable that this cause has become a priority among federal and provincial politicians. These changes must be put in place as quickly as possible to prevent tragedies like the one that led to David Wynn’s death.
