'Something went wrong': B.C. premier calls on Ottawa after Tori Dunn's killing
B.C.'s premier is calling on the federal government to take a closer look at how its bail law is being applied after a Surrey woman was killed in her own home earlier this month.
Premier David Eby spoke about Tori Dunn's death at a news conference Monday, calling her a "remarkable person."
"All of us want the same thing, which is the person responsible to be brought to justice and to be held accountable for this horrific crime," he said.
Police found 30-year-old Dunn suffering from life-threatening injuries in a home on 182A Street around 10 p.m. on June 16. She was taken to hospital but did not survive.
Police arrested a suspect nearby, who remains in custody for an unrelated charge but has not yet been charged with Dunn's killing, according to the Integrated Homicide Investigation Team.
"Something went wrong here. Something went wrong," Eby said Monday. "An individual who was charged with a serious crime was brought in front of the court, the Crown said, ‘Please don't release this person, they're likely to offend, it will compromise the public's confidence in the justice system,’ and the judge applying the law decided to release that person where he allegedly went out and murdered another person. Something obviously went wrong here."
At a vigil over the weekend, Dunn's brother, Lee, also called for change.
"There needs to be some reform. This guy shouldn’t have been out walking around," he said. "This shouldn't have happened. It could have been prevented."
Eby said he wants the federal government to look into the application of its bail reform system, which was adjusted earlier this year.
Bill C-48, which came into effect on Jan. 4, expanded the use of reverse-onus provisions, which force the accused in some cases to demonstrate why they should be released on bail, rather than requiring prosecutors to prove why they should remain in custody. The bill also broadens the reverse onus targeting repeat offenders of intimate partner violence, and requires the courts to consider an accused person's history of convictions for violence when making a bail decision.
"Whether it's the judge's application of the law or whether it's the law itself, this case cries out for ensuring that the federal government is looking at this. This is their responsibility. This is their law. Our provincial prosecutors said please don't release him, and the court said he's released under the federal law," Eby said. "We need to make sure we're learning from cases like this so this woman's life does not go in vain."
CTVNews.ca Top Stories
Biden and Harris call the Israeli strike killing Hezbollah’s Nasrallah a 'measure of justice'
The Israeli strike that killed Hezbollah's Hassan Nasrallah was a 'measure of justice' for victims of a four-decade 'reign of terror,' U.S. President Joe Biden said Saturday.
LGBTQ2S+ minister Pascale St-Onge to make history with parental leave
Canadian Heritage Minister Pascale St-Onge is set to make history by becoming the first openly lesbian cabinet minister to take parental leave when her wife gives birth in the coming weeks.
SpaceX launches rescue mission for 2 NASA astronauts who are stuck in space until next year
SpaceX launched a rescue mission for the two stuck astronauts at the International Space Station on Saturday, sending up a downsized crew to bring them home but not until next year.
Scientists discover hidden ancient forest on treeless island
Trees haven't grown on the Falkland Islands for thousands of years. But tree trunks and branches preserved in peat suggest the islands were once home to a forest.
At least 52 dead and millions without power after Helene's deadly march across southeastern U.S.
Hurricane Helene caused at least 52 deaths and billions of dollars of destruction across a wide swath of the southeastern U.S. as it raced through, and more than three million customers went into the weekend without any power and for some a continued threat of floods.
What is open and closed this National Day for Truth and Reconciliation
This Monday, Sept. 30 is the National Day for Truth and Reconciliation (NDTR), a federal statutory holiday and day of remembrance for the Indigenous children who never came home from Canadian residential schools, as well as those who survived them.
They hit it off on vacation but then he went silent. So she decided to pick up the phone
When a few weeks passed and Nana Prempeh still hadn’t heard from the guy she met on vacation, she turned to her friends for advice.
Sima Sistani, who embraced Ozempic, is out as CEO of WeightWatchers
WeightWatchers CEO Sima Sistani, who pushed the company into embracing weight-loss drugs, is leaving the position after a two-and-a-half year stint.
Russia invokes its nuclear capacity in a UN speech that's full of bile toward the West
Russia's top diplomat warned Saturday against 'trying to fight to victory with a nuclear power,' delivering a UN General Assembly speech packed with condemnations of what Russia sees as Western machinations in Ukraine and elsewhere — including inside the United Nations itself.