HIGH COURT SETS TIGHTER RULES FOR POLICE IN USE OF WIRETAPS

Says B.C. court lax in case involving drug-ring suspects

Declaring that wiretapping is highly intrusive, the Supreme Court of Canada
clamped down on phone spying Thursday by ruling that the B.C. Court of
Appeal went too far in invading the privacy rights of suspects in a cocaine
trafficking ring.

In a unanimous 9-0 ruling, the high court set ground rules for when judges
can order wiretaps. Police must demonstrate that they have no other
reasonable choice and must not resort to such an invasive measure just for
efficiency's sake.

"The judge should remember that the citizens of his country must be
protected against unwanted fishing expeditions by the state and its law
enforcement agencies," Justice Louis LeBel wrote in a clear decision that
was his first since joining the bench last January.

"The judge must keep important values of Canadian society in sight and look
seriously at whether there is, practically speaking, no other reasonable
alternative method of investigation."

Despite their request that the charges be dropped because police were sloppy
in their wiretap paper work, the Supreme Court upheld an earlier order for a
new trial for Neil Grandmaison and eight co-accused which will include
wiretap evidence.

The court, however, concluded that the B.C. Court of Appeal was lax when it
lowered the bar on a standard set out in the Criminal Code by ruling that
wiretaps can be used for the efficiency of an investigation.

"Such a result would rightly send a chill down the spine of every
freedom-loving Canadian," LeBel wrote.

As a general rule, the Edmonton Police Service is already following what the
Supreme Court of Canada has ruled, said information officer Sgt. Jeff
Anderson.

"It seems like the normal course of action we've followed for a number of
years now."

Anderson said that for this reason the ruling doesn't seem too startling to
him.

"We have not ever attempted to go after a wiretap unless we've explored all
the options," he said.

The Criminal Code permits wiretap authorization if police can convince a
judge that other investigative procedures have been tried and failed and
that no others are likely to succeed.

The court cautioned that does not mean wiretaps can only be used as a last
resort after police have exhausted all other possibilities.

Rather, the court crafted a middle-of-the-road rule that requires police to
show that they aren't likely to succeed by using other measures.

"This provides some clarity. The ground rules are there," said David
Frankel, a Vancouver-based Justice Department lawyer who convinced the court
to salvage the criminal charges.

According to court testimony, Grandmaison, a bodybuilder and onetime member
of a KISS cover band, is believed to be the Victoria ringleader of a group
that funneled large quantities of drugs into the streets and schools of
Vancouver and Victoria.

After months of frustrating undercover surveillance, police were granted
permission to tap the home phones and pagers of the suspects.

The taps gave police their break, enabling them to obtain search warrants
and seize two kilograms of cocaine, as well as money and weapons.