CLASP (Community and Legal Aid Services Programme)

CLASP is hiring for 2 positions! We are looking for a lawyer in Administrative Law and lawyer in Criminal Law. Further info can be found the poster below. Interested candidates should apply through the YUhire Portal

On Tuesday, October 20th, Justice Robert Kelly rendered the long-awaited verdict of Constable Daniel Montsion, who was charged with manslaughter, aggravated assault and assault with a weapon following the fatal arrest of Abdirahman Abdi. Mr. Abdi was an unarmed, Black, man, who struggled with mental health issues. In the moments leading up to the violent arrest on July 24th 2016, Const. Montsion arrived on the scene equipped with special gloves that were described as “brass knuckles” and, issued to him by Ottawa’s anti-gang unit. Video footage captured Const. Montsion delivering multiple blows to Mr. Abdi’s head and face with the reinforced knuckles. During this fatal altercation, Mr. Abdi was also pepper sprayed, hit with a baton and kicked repeatedly.

At trial, a pathologist report revealed that Mr. Abdi’s death was caused by a heart attack, as his heart suffered from severe blockages. However, Mr. Abdi sustained many injuries to both his head and face, the most significant being facial fractures around his nose. The court wrestled with many issues: (1) whether Const. Montsion’s blows were a significant contribution to Mr. Abdi’s heart attack; (2) whether Const. Montsion’s blows caused the fractures and; (3) whether Const. Montsion’s special gloves constituted a “weapon”. In rendering his verdict, Justice Kelly concluded that the Crown had not discharged its onus of proof and said, “in the end, I am left with a reasonable doubt on each of the three main issues.”

The recent and widespread demonstrations against police brutality and anti-Black racism across North America served as a backdrop to Const. Montsion’s acquittal. The Ottawa community and communities all across Ontario were devastated by the justice system’s blatant failure to serve its fundamental purpose, to administer justice.

The harsh reality is that our justice system is inherently incapable of administering meaningful justice for historically disadvantaged groups (i.e.: Indigenous and Black communities) because it does not account for racial biases, systemic discrimination or social inequalities. Absent in Justice Kelly’s verdict was a consideration of the underlying systemic factors that contribute to the disproportionate violence inflicted on Black communities by law enforcement throughout the province.

Our criminal justice system ultimately functions to answer one question: “Did the accused commit the alleged offence(s) beyond a reasonable doubt?”. This rudimentary question is answered by applying the system’s established laws, policies and practices, which are intimately connected to Canada’s legacy of colonialism and slavery, to the case before the court. In other words, Mr. Abdi’s death is a part of a historical pattern of systemic injustices that continues today.

The verdict of Const. Montsion amplified the need for broad legislative reforms that meaningfully addresses the systemic discrimination that permeates our criminal justice system, and fuels the injustices faced by racialized communities. As stated by Farhia Ahmed, the outgoing chair of the Justice For Abdirahman Coalition, ““without a complete over-haul of this current so called justice system, a wound as deep as this is impossible to repair.”

(Najma A - Criminal Law Division)