WE COULD USE A LITTLE U.S. JUSTICE IN CANADA

It gets discouraging to see Canada's justice system come up short so
often when compared to how they deal with crime and punishment south
of the border.

While there is much wrong with the U.S. system -- their archaic use of
capital punishment, arbitrary three-strikes laws, overzealous
prosecution of drug users and inconsistent sentencing that leave a
notoriously large number of black men behind bars, to name but a few --
we'd do well to copy aspects of their efficiency and moral certainty.

Two cases this week are good examples.

The first was the decision Tuesday by a Seattle judge to re-sentence
Fraser Valley crime boss Clay Roueche to 30 years in prison for
conspiracy to export cocaine, import marijuana and to engage in money
laundering. In Canada, were the courts not to throw out the case due
to legal arguments of a clever defence lawyer, Roueche would have
received something like a quarter to a third of that sentence, much to
the constant horror of the Canadian public.

Then yesterday, we learned of the Seattle police department's swift
action in dealing with Const. Ian Birk, who shot and killed Vancouver
Island native carver John Williams on Aug. 30. While prosecutors
decided Birk was protected from charges under a state law because he
didn't act in bad faith or with malice, an internal review found the
shooting was "unjustified and outside of policy, tactics and training."

Police Chief John Diaz accepted Birk's resignation. In all the recent
police-involved killings in B.C., has any police officer been forced
to resign? And in less than six months, no less?

We need a more U.S. sense of right and wrong in Canada.