Mr. Speaker, I am deeply troubled by the profound tragedy that occurred Sunday at Sarnia's Lambton College campus. My heart goes out to his family and all who knew 20-year-old Dane Nisbet, a promising young former junior hockey player who was taken far too soon, and also to the two others who were injured.
This senseless and unnecessary act of violence has shaken the community. We all know it could have been prevented. The primary suspect was already under a court order prohibiting him from possessing firearms and has a rap sheet a mile long. He was arrested in March for assault with a weapon and failure to comply. Last May, he was arrested on two counts of assault with a weapon and a breach of order, and he was previously charged with assaulting an elderly man. This guy should never have been on the streets. It is absolutely insane how he was not in jail.
Who bears the responsibility for this? It is the Liberal catch-and-release bail policies that continue to place dangerous offenders back on our streets instead of keeping them behind bars. We must fix these failed policies now to protect innocent lives. Canadians deserve safer—