The truth about Ipperwash

Page 6

After listening to several weeks of testimony, Judge Hugh Fraser visited the site of the Ipperwash confrontation, something lawyers say was a key decision because it allowed the judge to see with his own eyes the evidence that was almost impossible for prosecutors or defense attorneys to effectively introduce in a courtroom setting.

This, the lawyers say, was a sign that Judge Fraser was willing to take extreme measures to get to the truth about that 30 minutes in the dark on Sept. 6, 1995 when seven police officers opened fire and shot three First Nations people, killing Dudley George.

The judge's commitment to search out the truth was reflected in the verdict: He didn't believe the testimony of three Ontario Provincial Police officers and he told them why. Fraser believes they concocted their version of the incident after the fact, and lied on the stand.

Sometime during the 30 days following the conviction, lawyers for Acting Sgt. Kenneth Deane will have to convince a general division judge that Judge Fraser erred in law so that an appeal of the guilty verdict can be heard. That's another story.

But for now, the big story - perhaps the biggest story in the legal history of Aboriginal people in Canada - is the sentencing. Will the police officer's sentence match the severity of the crime? Will Judge Fraser send a message to the Canadian public that to attempt to deceive a court in this country will be seen as contempt of the judicial system and dealt with severely?

If backroom politics can influence a judge with the resolve to go the extra mile for justice the way Judge Fraser did - and a token sentence is ordered - the spark of hope that Aboriginal people are feeling this month, the stirring of a belief that they can be true to themselves, to their history and to their culture and still get justice in a Canadian court, will be extinguished.

We hope the judge will have the courage to finish the job, that those who seek to force an inquiry into the actions of the police will have the strength to finish that job, and we commend the George family for displaying immense courage in battling the odds. The kind of courage that only those who understand Aboriginal people's struggle for justice in this country could possibly comprehend.