Report June 1, Queen's Park tells Cornwall probe 

Surprise cabinet decree cuts off $40M probe into sex-abuse allegations 

Toronto Star Oct 25, 2008 12:41 PM  

Colin Perkel

THE CANADIAN PRESS

A long-running judicial inquiry sparked by allegations of a pedophile ring in eastern Ontario was stunned to learn the provincial government had decided to pull the plug on the hearings, which have cost taxpayers close to $40 million, sources say.

The commission had planned to report sometime in the fall of 2009 but in a decree issued Sept. 24, cabinet ordered the commission to report by June 1.

"That was not a doable task as far as this commission was concerned," said Peter Engelmann, lead lawyer for the inquiry.

"We're careful to respect the independence of the inquiry process (but) it's time to move forward," the government source said.

"They've had a great deal of time."

The cabinet order blindsided inquiry officials, who suddenly found themselves scrambling but without any real power to change the decision.

"Sometimes ultimatums are done deals," a source said.

"You can have a dialogue and you might get changes but it's more than an ultimatum."

The order also specified the hearings wrap up by Dec. 31 – effectively Dec. 19 because of the holiday season.

 That deadline would have wiped out testimony from the Ministry of the Attorney General slated for January, possibly creating the perception of government meddling, another source said.

The government relented somewhat after almost two weeks of discussions.

A new cabinet order, issued last week, now demands the hearings wrap up by Jan. 31 with the final report be delivered July 31.

The Liberal government set up the commission under Ontario Superior Court Justice Normand Glaude in April 2005 to probe how public institutions responded to longstanding allegations of sexual abuse in Cornwall, Ont.

It did not specify an end date.

Among them more sensational allegations made was that a pedophile ring had operated in the area, but a provincial police investigation found no evidence of a ring.

The cost of the inquiry is fast approaching $40 million – more than $21 million spent directly by the commission itself – more than four times the cost of the tainted-water inquiry in Walkerton, Ont., or the recent probe of child forensic pathology.

It's also substantially higher than the Ipperwash inquiry into to the death of aboriginal Dudley George, which cost about $26 million.

"It has been a long process. The costs will speak for themselves," said Attorney General Chris Bentley.

Engelmann defended both the cost and time the inquiry has taken, pointing out its sensitive and complex subject matter.

"This has been a contentious hearing," Engelmann said.

"We have a hugely and highly fractured community here. We've got conspiracy issues we're dealing with from both ends."

So far, the commission has heard from some 140 witnesses, sorted through 100,000 documents and looked at the seven-year police investigation into the allegations.

In addition, the hearings have run into 10 court challenges and faced a messy legal fight that ended up with former police officer Perry Dunlop – a key witness – jailed for seven months for refusing to testify.

Engelmann said one problem is that the inquiry's mandate was too fuzzy, although he did concede the commission should have focused more at the outset.

"Maybe there are people who think we've done too much but there are a lot of people who think we haven't done enough."

12:03ET 25-10-08

Comments on this story are now closed

Inquiries are often a Botttomless Money Pit for Lawyers.

I have watched a few inquiries, and the silly long winded questions by lawyers with little real point is absolutely astounding. I suggest inquiries without the person being questioned having a Lawyer present. After all the evidence presented cannot be used in a Criminal Court. Questions should be direct and an answer from the person being questioned, without Lawyer intervention. The Nixon Watergate Senate Investigation is the type of format that gets to the essence of the matter. Durgan.

Posted By Durgan at 9:13 PM Saturday, October 25 2008

From what we know now and what was provided by "atticus finch" i think something should be done to get the money back that was wasted on this probe thank you atticus for your research and information that clearly shows what a waste of time and money this probe has been... i believe the lawyers involved thought nobody would pay attention or investigate because of the subject matter..... lets publish what they have ... and if it hasnt been done right ..lets get our money back!!!

Posted By steedmandible at 6:34 PM Saturday, October 25 2008

You Got Too Be Kidding! How many Ontarians would it take to pay for all this?

Fast approaching $40 million! In the form of taxes how many people from this province would it take to pay for all this? Is this the US or Canada? Somebody should be looking into where all this money went and WHY! Seven Year police investigation. Good heavens (I am being polite).

Posted By cloudniner at 4:35 PM Saturday, October 25 2008

 (3) cost of the inquiry is fast approaching $40 million.....

We know that the the Lieutenant Governor in Council can appoint any person or persons in Ontario to conduct a Public Inquiry. So why lawyers? Wikipedia provides: Executive Council of Ontario A council of ministers of the Crown chaired by the Premier of Ontario, the Executive Council, almost always made up of members of the Legislative Assembly of Ontario, advises the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario on how to exercise the executive functions of the Ontario Crown. So here you have the Preimer of Ontario, and lawyer, Dalton McGuinty, and his mostly appointed lawyer (or married to lawyers) Executive Council, acting through the guise of the Executive Council of Ontario directing the Lieutenant Governor of Ontario to appoint the lawyers to run our Public Inquiries to the tune of millions of dollars paid to the Ontario lawyers. How is this cost effective to the Citizens of Ontario? We need inquiries and should have them everyday but without lawyers.

Posted By atticus finch at 4:24 PM Saturday, October 25 2008

Stop the madness

There never was a "gay sex ring " in Cornwall. There is barely any gay life in the that drab, conservative little city. This was not an investigation into pedophilia but a witch hunt. Guess what! Witches don't exist and neither does a gay sex ring. Perhaps the accusers and the police should refund $40M wasted in search of their phantoms.

 (2) cost of the inquiry is fast approaching $40 million.....

Part(1)of my submission provides that the the Lieutenant Governor in Council may appoint one or more persons to conduct public inquiries in Ontario. Why can we not appoint a retired Police Chief, one transcriber and one clerk and no lawyers to provide Ontario a Public Inquiry? Part (3)of my submission will provide the answer to this.

I would bet that the Ontario lawyers have been paid most of the $40 million in this inquiry. The question is why does Ontario need lawyers to conduct public inquiries? Does the public in Ontario suffers again at the hands of lawyers. The Public Inquiries Act provides that whenever the Lieutenant Governor in Council considers it expedient to cause inquiry to be made concerning any matter connected with or affecting the good government of Ontario or the conduct of any part of the public business thereof or of the administration of justice therein or that the Lieutenant Governor in Council declares to be a matter of public concern and the inquiry is not regulated by any special law, the Lieutenant Governor in Council may, by commission, appoint one or more persons to conduct the inquiry. R.S.O. 1990, c. P.41, s. 2.

The commission was set up to probe how public institutions responded to longstanding allegations of sexual abuse in Cornwall. How can it take 4 years to do that, and how is it that the only person to go to jail was not one of the pedophiles but a good and decent cop who has been harassed and vilified to within an inch of his life? This is a cash cow for the lawyers and for those who take their own sweet time in getting answers. This is a Kafkaesque farce and a fraud on the taxpayers. A new inquiry should be set up to investigate how this bunch of clowns managed to waste $40 million of taxpayers money.