Two convicted killers are in the news for the special treatment, the soft on crime approach, of Justin Trudeau and his Liberals.
First Christopher Garnier, the man that killed police constable Catherine Campbell, and is now getting his PTSD treatment paid for by Veterans Affairs even though he is not a vet.
Trudeau and his cabinet claim to be outraged by the Garnier case but won’t revoke his treatment benefits. Actual vets are waiting while Garnier gets front of the line treatment.
In a statement the other day Veterans Affairs Minister Seamus O’Regan said this won’t happen going forward. Yet despite having the power to stop what is happening now, O’Regan said no.
Remember, vets are asking for more than we can give. That’s what Trudeau said last winter.
That statement, like this decision, is an insult to vets. It is also in keeping with Trudeau’s soft on crime outlook.
Defending a child murderer.
The second killer in the news this week is Terri-Lynne McClintic. This woman lured an 8 year-old girl as she walked home from school. McClintic took Tori Stafford to a secluded place where her boyfriend repeatedly raped the little girl.
McClintic then helped kill Tori, using a hammer.
For some reason McClintic was recently transferred from Grand Valley Institution for Women in Kitchener, Ontario to Okimaw Ohci Healing Lodge in Maple Creek, Saskatchewan.
As the Conservatives asked question after question and demanded the government reverse the transfer, Trudeau accused the Conservatives of playing politics.
“The member opposite was part of a government that in 2014 transferred this individual to a medium-security facility. That individual is still in a medium-security facility,” Trudeau said.
Trudeau is playing with words.
That might be true in a technical way but the difference between the prison McClintic was in and the healing lodge she lives in now are vast.
The Grand Valley Institution for Women is a traditional prison. It has a fence, razor wire, bars. The healing lodge gives McClintic her own condo like apartment. The is no fence or razor wire.
According to National Post, escapes from healing lodges are not uncommon and their effectiveness at lowering recidivism rates is mixed at best.
The government has the power to alter both of these decisions.
They won’t.
Garnier is getting benefits meant for veterans while actual veterans wait. Why? Because he developed PTSD from strangling a woman to death.
He did this as an adult, not as a kid still living off his father’s work benefits.
It is a ridiculous and offensive decision that the government could easily reverse but they won’t.
Same with McClintic’s transfer to a place that is nicer than where many Canadians live. The law gives the minister the power to reverse the transfer and put this disgusting criminal behind bars.
Trudeau is saying no and accusing the other side of playing politics.
No, politics is at the heart of what Trudeau’s approach here, his soft on crime approach.
The House of Commons is currently considering Bill C-75, a bill the Liberals claim is about making the justice system fairer. Critics on the left and right have plenty of criticism of the bill but one thing it will explicitly do is reduce sentence for a myriad of crimes.
Liberals hate being told they are soft on crime, but it is true.
Given the chance to do the right thing the government has said no twice this week.
Shame on them all.
Shame on Justin Trudeau.