I do not think that your amendment adds a great deal to what already exists in the Criminal Code. I imagine that a judge who relies on the present provisions in the Criminal Code would come to the conclusion that you are hoping for, that is, in this particular case, that the person will remain in custody. In this case, I can accept the idea that “you cannot have too much of a good thing“ and I am ready to add this possibility to the act, which judges already take into consideration, in my view.
But I would like us to bear in mind that people are falsely accused of murder in Canada. I was fortunate to have a wonderful criminal law practice. I never got mixed up with criminal organizations. I was fortunate to have a reasonably good reputation with the result that lawyers who did not do criminal law would send me their criminal cases. I have obtained four acquittals in murder cases and I see no reason why those people would not have the right to bail.
These are things that you never hear about. Let me just mention one case. It involved a doorman at a club, a bouncer. He was at the door to keep order and make sure that people came to no harm. There was only one bartender, who asked him to look after the bar while he went to the bathroom. A patron, who had been drinking quite a lot, ordered a drink. The doorman told him that he was the bouncer and that he did not serve drinks. The patron became aggressive and threatened the doorman, who still refused to serve him. The patron punched him.The doorman grabbed him as he fell backwards and punched him back. The patron fell to the floor and died. The doorman was charged with murder. I do not have to tell you that he was acquitted. The Crown was hoping that we would plead guilty to manslaughter, but I had enough experience that I was not concerned when the charge was more serious than the one they wanted. Yes, he was granted bail and I do not see why anyone would think that someone like him should not be granted bail.
I could tell you about other cases, domestic situations, but they will never make the front pages. The front pages are for the heinous crimes. In daily practice, we see that we have a country and a justice system where the presumption of innocence is important, thank God. It should apply right from the start, in my opinion, even though, in a murder case, the onus would be on the accused to show that it would not be dangerous to release him.